How Does The Fourth Amendment Apply To School Officials?

Many years ago, the United States Constitution was created as a guideline for the newly formed government to run this country as well as secure protection rights of all citizens. Since then, there have been many incidents that question the violation of citizens’ rights under the Constitution, such as the violation of the fourth amendment which protects citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures especially in the school system and on college campuses. The fourth amendment states, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized” (O’Brien, 2014). As this pertains to those citizens who are students, whether it be in the primary, secondary, or post-secondary setting, the question that unveils itself is whether or not students are entitled to their constitutional rights, in this case, the fourth amendment’s rights, while in the school environment.

The case of New Jersey vs T.L.O was a resultant case of a search conducted by the then assistant vice principal- Theodore Choplick at Piscataway township high school with two freshmen girls -T.L.O inclusive, after a teacher had caught them smoking cigarettes in the bathroom. The first girl had admitted to the offense, however, T.L.O denied this. This prompted Theodore to demand to search her purse where he found implicating evidence. In short, she was expelled and fined for 1000 USD. This led to a court case with an intent on proving that the school had violated the Fourth Amendment since the school was a Governmental organization. The Fourth Amendment states that “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures,

Justice Souter delivered the opinion of the Court saying that the search did violate Savanna Fourth Amendment right because no drugs were suspected to be concealed in her bra and underwear so they had no reason . The judge felt the school officials were not liable and entitled to qualified immunity because school officials were just trying to prevent drugs distributed throughout the school.

In the Supreme Court case “Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton, 1995,” the question before the court was whether or not “...random drug testing of high school athletes violates the reasonable search and seizure clause of the Fourth Amendment.”(“Vernonia School District.” [Oyez]). The case concerned the Fourth Amendment, which protects a person’s right to privacy and protects them from unreasonable searches and seizures. In this case, a seventh-grade student, James Acton, claimed that the situation regarding a mandatory drug test in his school was an unreasonable search. Without doing the test, he was not allowed to join an athletic team. Although the court case changed its name order, the plaintiff in the Supreme Court trial was the Vernonia

The American Revolution was a struggle in which colonists objected to the cruel and harsh treatment of Great Britain. Following the revolution, American patriots dedicated themselves to creating an America that is founded on the principals of equality and justice for all people. Their intention was to create a system that would correct the many wrongs of the British. The United States constitution implemented the 4th amendment that would prevent the unlawful searching of American citizens. The constitution however, is a living, and breathing document that can have a different meaning for a different time period. The mid 1980s cases of the Veronia School District v. James Acton and

In recent times there has been a growing number of concerns regarding the way police officers perform arrests. Along with these arrests are searches conducted by officers which can sometimes be unconstitutional. The Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution protects its citizens by giving “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures” (U.S. Const., amend. IV). This amendment aims to prevent officers from conducting random searches of a citizens’ property and aims to give them a reasonable expectation of privacy.

The intent of the Fourth Amendment is to guarantee security against unreasonable governmental searches. Because school officials are actually

Administrative searches have always been a controversial topic and have brought about many civil cases. Publicized warrant cases have changed the way warrantless searches are conducted. The privacy of individuals is a very sensitive subject and our right to privacy is clearly stated in the 4th amendment, Bill of Rights. The original notion in the 4th amendment is “each man’s home is a castle” (Legal Information Institute, 2014). "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or

The officer walked over to the wall and was able to see two juveniles in a fistfight. Their clothes were ripped, their eyes swollen, and their faces were bleeding. The officer entered the property through an open gate and broke up the fight. The officer observed several plastic baggies containing a white powdery substance on a patio table. The officer called the boys’ parents walking towards the patio’s screen door. A woman, dressed in a nightgown exited the house and immediately started explaining the baggies on the table. The officer then arrested the woman for possession of narcotics. After the backyard was secured the other officer continued to the location where the purse was drooped. As he retrieved the purse the officer observed marihuana cigarettes among its spilled contents. The officer seized the evidence and arrested the purse’s owner.

The school officials must have broad powers to control student conduct which includes the power of search and seizure. T.L.O’s behavior furnished a reasonable basis for the search of her purse therefore the “exclusionary rule” does not apply. Because school officials are employees of the state, they are obligated to respect every student's right including his/her right to privacy.

The first question at hand is: Do Students have the same rights as adults under the Fourth Amendment? The Supreme Court, over fifty year ago, ruled that students do not abandon their constitutional rights when they enter a school building (“The Fourth Amendment & Students,” 2008). However, students’ rights to privacy are more limited than those of adults. For adults, a search requires a warrant, probable cause, or reasonable suspicion and any that illegal evidence obtained during a search can be used in court (“The Fourth Amendment & Students,” 2008). One job school districts have is to maintain safety. Therefore, students’ rights are limited. A warrant is not required for a search of a student, and the school officials only need reasonable suspicion to search a student (“The

School officials are given a wide latitude to conduct search and seizures, as compared normal citizens. The 5th Amendment dictates that, “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated” (U.S. Const. amend. IV). Thusly, individuals have a fundamental right to privacy. In normal society law enforcement officers cannot search a person property without a warrant or probable cause, an objective determination based on evidence that a crime has been committed. Probable Cause cannot be meat through hearsay or hunches. This high bar of privacy presents a problem in a school atmosphere because schools need a high level of decorum in order to operate

As stated in the textbook, “The Fourth Amendment clearly applies to searches and seizures conducted on the campuses of public colleges and universities” (Ferdico, Fradella, & Totten, 2015). Stating that public university officials must obtain a search warrant before searching student’s dorm rooms. Contrary to private universities where “the Fourth Amendment does not protect students at private colleges and universities from searches conducted by school officials” (Ferdico, Fradella, & Totten, 2015). Although in public universities school officials have freedom to enforce campus disciplinary regulations. However, officials cannot act as a tool of law enforcement.

Imagine you are an ordinary high schooler. You have a good academic record, a respectable reputation, and a bright future. You one day are pressured by others into doing marijuana and suddenly all those countless hours of studying to get into an amazing college vanish in front of your very eyes. Abruptly, you come to the realization that you are addicted to marijuana As, if this isn’t enough you are later caught selling it to others at your school. This is a similar situation at Sharon High School in Sharon, Massachusetts. The student was allegedly found selling drugs to other students at his high school. When the school found out about this they investigated the student’s locker and found nine packages of marijuana in his book bag. The student became livid and attempted to get his book with the drugs back. This shows that this student had such an addiction to the cannabis that he did not care about the consequences.

Under the fourth amendment a search occurs when a government agent or employee violates an individual’s expectation of privacy.