South Milwaukee High School requiring students to take breathalyzer test at prom

SOUTH MILWAUKEE, Wis. (CBS 58) -- When you think of high school prom you tend to think of elegant dresses, music and dancing, not breathalyzers.

However, for students at South Milwaukee High School, if they want to take part in their big night, they'll have to take a breathalyzer test when they arrive.

"I thought prom was supposed to be a big part of high school and everyone is supposed to go to prom and be this big thing, but now people don’t want to go anymore,” said Lyvia Wasnidge, a student at South Milwaukee High School.

Prom preparations are well underway for the high school; however, some students say they were surprised when they read about what they should expect at this month's prom.

"It was confirmed when I bought tickets the other day," said Shelby Brooks, a student at South Milwaukee High School. "It's in the fine print. You have to agree to be breathalyzed and go through a metal detector."

A detailed prom letter on the school's website says when students arrive to the dance at the Baird Center, they will be required to go through weapons detection, have their belongings searched and will be breathalyzed.

“I think the breathalyzers are just unnecessary and a little bit of an invasion of privacy," said Wasnidge.

"It just makes me feel really uncomfortable," said Brooks.

Brooks, who went to prom last year, says some of the safety measures are necessary.

"I understand it's very necessary," said Brooks. "I was at prom last year and it was honestly a mess. There were a lot of things teenagers should not be doing at prom."

However, she says some of the safety measures are too extreme, including the breathalyzer test. She says other students agree and it's making them not want to attend.

"There's definitely ulterior methods we could use to do this," said Brooks. "Theres a lot of schools that probably don’t have this issue, but don’t go as far as we are trying to go."

“A lot of people have been complaining about it and saying they are not going to go because of it,” said Wasnidge.

Daniel Bader, the communication coordinator with the School District of South Milwaukee responded to CBS 58's inquiry in a statement below.

"There are not any concerns about attendance at prom, nor are there any considerations about canceling it. The security measures you mentioned are the standard practice of area high schools," said Bader.