An Examination Of Public School Students Fourth...

Privacy vs. Safety An Examination of Public School Students’ Fourth Amendment Rights on Campus Kathryn Hesse Communication 385 Fall 2014 The Fourth Amendment was written to protect every American’s personal right to privacy by issuing requirement for searches and seizures of one’s person and property. This amendment protects U.S. citizens from having their privacy violated by the government for no reason. According to the Fourth Amendment, â€Å"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 the Oath of affirmation, and particularly describing the place to†¦show more content†¦According to Officer John Domingue of the Lafayette Police Department, â€Å"There are some cases in which we (police officers) don’t need a warrant to search a home. For example, if someone called in a domestic dispute, and we get there, and we hear a woman inside scream â€Å"help me!† we can go in because there is no time for a warrant. She could be dead by the time we get ahold of a judge. That’s called exigent circumstances.† (J. Domingue, personal communication, October 30, 2014) This whole process has been put in place to keep citizens from having their privacy violated, but since its creation, the fourth amendment has been altered. One of the alterations deals with the reduction of public schools students’ Fourth Amendment rights while on public school campuses. This reduction has been put in place for the safety of students and school staff. Because schools are meant to be a safe place for children, school administrators are given the authority to search any student who is suspected of violating school rules with less evidence required than that of a police officer to complete a search or seizure. The administrator only requires reasonable suspicion to search a student. Reasonable suspicion requires some facts but less hard evidence than probable cause. It is important to take into account this limitation because parents, administrators, and students should be fully aware of any reduction of rights that occur when a student steps foot on a public school campus. The