Probable Cause Debate

“Ultimately, the Supreme Court held 6-3 that the school’s search of T.L.O.’s purse was constitutional.” (Lannacci 2016). This essay will briefly examine the up till today open question that can never really be given a definite answer until applied in each case- “the applicability of the exclusionary rule in juvenile delinquency or criminal proceedings when the evidence has been seized in a school, by a school official, in violation of the Fourth Amendment.” (Stoddard 2011).

Justice Thomas had a dissenting opinion and stated that the fourth amendment right does protect us against unreasonable search and seizures (as did most of the judges). But it is the context of were it takes place he says students have the fourth amendment right just not on school property. The reason is the responsibility the school and the officials have is to ensure the safety of the students. Thomas concurred in the

When is a search and seizure reasonable? John Vile clearly explains the origination of the Fourth Amendment and why it was created at the time of the creation of the Constitution, ¨Like the amendment that precedes it, the Fourth Amendment was largely motivated by abuses of the British when they ruled America. They had used general warrants, or so-called writs of assistance, in tracking down customs violations in the colonies. A number of states subsequently adopted provisions against such warrants, and ratifying conventions in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina all proposed amendments dealing with the subject¨(Vile). At first, the forefathers of our country created the Fourth Amendment so that the British could not infringe on the colonists privacy. The thought of privacy within schools was not even something that was of concern at the time of the creation of the Constitution. As time has gone on, our country has made advancements that our founding fathers could never have foreseen, and has left our current government to interpret the Fourth Amendment themselves. The Fourth Amendment is detrimental when it comes to someone’s privacy, especially in a school environment. It is valuable to students and teachers alike, without it teachers and staff members would be able to search a student’s belongings without a reason or warrant. The Fourth Amendment is definitely viable in the school environment because it places regulations on what the staff in the schools can do without

The Fourth Amendment states that a search is constitutionally unreasonable unless there is a warrant issued supported by probable cause. The interests in schools are different because they must maintain order and discipline of children and their Fourth Amendment rights must be balanced. One type of search that has arisen lately is the strip search. The Supreme Court had not directly ruled on the constitutionality of strip searches until 2009 with the case of Safford Unified School District v. Redding. This paper will break down the topic of strip searches in public schools into three parts. Part 1 will show how the Supreme Court decisions have defined the rights of school children under the Fourth Amendment. The second part will compare and contrast different court cases that have dealt with strip searches. The third, and final part, will look into responses to the problem and recommendations that schools should use when dealing with strip searches.

The arguments surrounding racial profiling can be distilled into two fundamental questions. Is this racial profiling practiced widely by police agencies in the United States? And if so, is the practice beneficial? Many feel that the use of profiles is beneficial for law officials. Some proponents argue that when race is used, but not necessarily as the sole factor profiles are useful. Additionally, those who support the use tend to find that complaints about profiling by racially underrepresented groups are unwarranted, overstated, and unsubstantiated.

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

So you have broken the law, whether or not you had a warrant for your arrest, or not, and now you have to stand trial. During this time, you may be wondering what’s ahead on your journey to being found innocent or guilty. There are many different things that you will have to endure, and it may be a long process. Today, I will be writing about the steps from the time you have your initial appearance until the time the judge gives the verdict on whether or not you are found guilty.

The First Appearance- this is the step where someone is brought before the judge and the defendant is informed of the charges that against him or her, rights advisement, right to have a lawyer or if they can’t afford one , then they have one chosen to represent them, and if possible have the right for bail. This pretrial activity takes place in a magistrate court. Probable cause determination is when a judicial officer will look and check police documents and make sure they obtained reasonable evidence that can be supported in the cause of the arrest. If probable cause is not presented in the court then the defendant is released. Probable cause determination is a key part in the first appearance.

It is clear that individuals that don’t understand the law to its full degree are the usual victims to the ones that know the ins and outs of the law. This case was based on the notion of search and seizure, also it concerns with when does officials have the right to search students. For us to understand and analyze this segment of the law, we must first understand what is Search and Seizure. It is in which police or other authorities and their agents have suspicion that a crime has been committed, with this information they conduct a search to seize any items that can be used for evidence. Fortunately for average citizens, police can’t randomly search individuals without either probable cause or obtain a search warrant before engaging in any forms of search and seizure. For police officers or other officials, they must abide by this rule and play fair because In cases where evidence is seized in a search, that evidence might be rejected by court procedures, such as with a motion to suppress the evidence under the exclusionary

In order to best understand racial profiling from a newfangled and more precise perspective, one must consider discrimination and statistics. In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, civilian complaints, legal actions, empirical research, and a number of high-profile incidents brought several law enforcement practices to the forefront of debates on racial/ethnic bias in policing. The aforementioned sources concluded that law enforcement agencies all across the country participate in the following forms of discrimination.

This article is relevant because it shows how racial profiling is more common than assumed and that it even takes place in a classroom full of 4-year-olds. This type racial profiling that is taking place at such

Ever since the first school shooting, a lot of people have changed their beliefs on this subject. I was in eighth grade when the shooting at Columbine High School took place. Before that shooting, I never would have considered something like that happening. Now, it is seventeen years later and school shootings almost seem like an everyday thing. That is sad, but it is true. This is why I believe a student should not have a high expectation of privacy while at school. The law used to be more lenient, but these circumstances have changed that. Right after Columbine, a lot of states had a zero tolerance law. According to the Center for Public Education site, this law said that if a student was caught with contraband they were given a strict punishment, no matter what the circumstance was. The laws have changed some over the last few years, and are not quite as strict as that. The schools still have to ensure that every student is safe, though. It is common for schools to have metal detectors or bring in dogs on a regular basis. Once they have a reason to suspect a student, they have the right to search their belongings. I believe this is well within their rights as administrators who are trying to protect the school as a whole. I realize that students may feel violated, I have been there. It was always an inconvenience to have to sit outside the hallways while the dogs searched each room. I never felt like it was wrong when they did find something though. So many students would bring large amounts of drugs, guns and knives to school. If it weren’t for the measures that the school took they would just be walking around with these items. I hope these laws never change, and my kids have the same protection that I did. I would hate to imagine my child going to school with guns and drugs within an arm’s reach. I believe the issue of student’s privacy is one that many people can agree with each other on.

I think that students’ expectations of privacy while in school are guaranteed by the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution which states that people have the right to be secure in their persons, property, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures (Siegel & Welsh, 2014). The schools must create and maintain a safe environment for students to learn. I feel that as long as the school provides safety and education then their policies should reflect. If searching the students’ property before they enter school grounds is necessary to ensure safety that is a reasonable search. Reasonable searches must be fair and impartial to all students no matter their race, ethnicity or gender. An example of an unreasonable search would be if

Differentiate between probable cause and reasonable suspicion. Explain how these concepts apply in criminal cases. There is a huge reason why the terms “reasonable suspicion” and “probable cause” are often confused with each other. Both have two different levels of suspicion, causing the two to be frequently interchanged by mistake. The legal standard of proof in United States law that is less than probable cause is reasonable suspicion.

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.