College students who reside in campus dormitories at public universities have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their dorm rooms that is protected by the fourth amendment; and officials cannot search these rooms for law enforcement purposes without a valid warrant. Non-students, however, have no such reasonable expectation of privacy in…

Courts have long held that public school teachers are "state actors" when they carry out the duties of their job. Despite this, very few teacher preparation programs include an education law class. In order to understand teachers' legal literacy, a survey was given to 300 public school teachers in Indiana. The survey assessed knowledge…

On December 21, 1911, Fremont Weeks, an employee of the Adams Express Company, was arrested while on the job at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri. Police suspected that Weeks was selling and "transmitting chances" in a lottery, which at the time was considered gambling, an illegal action in Missouri. While Weeks was being held at…

This study examined federal and state court decisions related to student Fourth Amendment rights following the "New Jersey v. T.L.O." ruling in 1985. There has been minimal research in judicial treatment of students' Fourth Amendment rights across regions of the country and less to what extent regional rulings implicitly or explicitly…

As it weighs the high-profile case of a 13-year-old girl strip-searched at school, the U.S. Supreme Court is grappling with where to draw the line between protecting student privacy rights and allowing school officials to take steps to ensure a safe environment. During oral arguments, several of the justices seemed sympathetic to the challenges…

As Internet-based communications and interactions by and between students and school staff become more prevalent, an appreciation of school rules for student behavior is important. Students carry electronic devices, sending and receiving communications inside and outside school, so two key questions exist regarding search and seizure of such…

Strip searches should be considered searches of last resort based on the intrusive nature of the search and the resulting impact it may have on a student. It is well established by the courts that as the intrusiveness of the search intensifies, the standard of the Fourth Amendment reasonably approaches probable cause which is a higher standard…

In light of the dramatic increase in the presence of weapons, violence, drugs, and other contraband in schools, school officials in the United States and England face significant challenges as they seek to maintain safe and orderly learning environments. Almost twenty five years after the United States Supreme Court's 1985 ruling in "New…

This study explores the court system's treatment of students' Fourth Amendment rights in cases emerging from contrasting minority school settings and whether discrepancies exist in case outcomes between these extremes. From virtually every search and seizure case that occurred between the 1985 U.S. Supreme Court case in "New Jersey v.…

The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the people of the United States from unreasonable searches and seizures. On first reading, these protections seem clearly defined. The amendment was meant to protect Americans from the kinds of random searches and seizures that the colonists experienced under British colonial rule. Under…

Reviews the status of Supreme Court deliberations in questions surrounding a New Jersey school's search of a student's purse. The state courts found the search unreasonable and reversed a lower court decision. (MD)

This paper reviews the application of the Fourth Amendment, which protects persons against unreasonable search and seizure, as it applies to the student-college relationship. The topics discussed in terms of federal and state court decisions include warrantless searches, delegation of authority to conduct searches, notice of identity and purpose…

The Fourth Amendment to the US Constitution provides protection of all citizens against unreasonable search and seizure. The US Supreme Court has affirmed that the basic purpose of the Fourth Amendment is to safeguard the privacy and security of individuals against unreasonable intrusive searches by governmental officials. Since students possess…

A Supreme Court ruling of January 1985 reversed a New Jersey Supreme Court decision of March 1984, which found a student search violated the Fourth Amendment. The reversal by the Supreme Court leaves unanswered some important questions about school searches. (MD)

Considers how school officials face the delicate task of balancing a student's individual right to Fourth Amendment protection against their duty to provide a safe and secure environment for all students--a major challenge in cases involving intrusive searches. Discusses recent developments involving intrusive searches, previous court rulings…