Exception—Special Needs: School Searches

Question 1

NJ v. TLO (1985)

Answer 1

TLO TWO-PART TEST: School search is justified at its inception when there are reasonable grounds for suspecting the search will turn up evidence the student has or is violating the law or a school rule

• Permissible in scope when measures are reasonably related to the objective of the search
• & not excessively intrusive in light of the student’s age and gender, and the nature of the infraction

Question 2

School Searches

Answer 2

RULES: Searches & seizures by public school officials are subject to 4th am. Warrant is NOT required. PC is NOT required – reasonable suspicion is sufficient.
o Reasonable suspicion that kid is violating a school rule or the law? can search the kid
o Doesn’t apply to private schools b/c no state action there

Question 3

School Searches Hypo’s

Answer 3

o HYPO: Search conducted by “school resource officer” – not consistent case law but in CA, falls under requirements of TLO (debatable because it is a police officer) but CA court said works at school for the benefit of students.
o HYPO: Reasonable expectation of privacy in school locker – parents and child usually sign waiver to search whenever so usually not, but if courts say there is, it is a muted expectation of privacy
o HYPO: Locker in an athletic club? No, doesn’t fall under school search

Question 4

Safford Unified School District v. Redding (2009)

Answer 4

RULE: A school search will be permissible in its scope when the measures adopted are reasonably related to the objectives of the search and not excessively intrusive in light of the age and sex of the student and the nature of the infraction

o **Strip searches are categorically extremely intrusive