School administrators are expected to balance the need for school safety and good order with the rights of students to be free of unreasonable search of their person and property. This balance can be particularly difficult when over-the-counter or prescription drugs are involved. This article summarizes a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that…

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 New Jersey vs. T.L.O. (1985) the Supreme Court clarified and limited the student's Fourth Amendment rights against "unreasonable searches and seizures." When school officials act alone and on their own authority, they need not obtain a warrant but may conduct a search based on the lesser standard of "reasonableness." (LHW)

Examines the fundamental points established by case law in the area of search and seizure of property of public school students. Federal and state court cases are analyzed; and a review of the literature establishes additional points of emphasis. (CT)

A case involving a strip-search of two second-grade girls in Talledega, Alabama, was dismissed with an eight-to-three vote by the 11th Circuit Court. The court issued an opinion on only one question in the case: whether the employees involved were entitled to "qualified immunity." Advises administrators to be cautious and permit strip…

Reviews court decisions pertaining to student rights in search and seizure cases where theft or drug abuse is suspected. Suggests that the in loco parentis doctrine gives school officials both the authority and responsibility for conducting reasonable searches even though the Fourth Amendment provides constitutional protection. (JAC)

This monograph attempts to provide clear understanding of the standards presented by the Supreme Court in "New Jersey v. T.L.O." relative to search and seizure in public schools, and suggests practical ways of applying search and seizure law to situations in the school setting. ("T.L.O." are the initials of the anonymous…

The purpose of this handbook is to help educators at all levels to recognize potential legal hazards in educational settings and to learn how to negotiate the slick roads safely. The focus is on school and classroom issues, not district-level topics. Legal basics are discussed in the context of both informal anecdotes about actual situations and…

This monograph analyzes health and safety issues in education in terms of relevant constitutional and statutory provisions. Chapter 1, an introduction, summarizes Fourteenth Amendment equal protection and due process clauses and defines "handicapped" under the Rehabilitation Act. State assistance and student eligibility under the…