• Registered: 10-27-2010
  • Posts: 1

Topic: Drug-sniffing policy at my high school

Hi, I am currently a senior at Temple City High School, in Temple City, CA. I am concerned that a certain policy at my school violates the 4th amendment. My school is using the Interquest Program to detect drugs and weapons through the use of widespread, random, unannounced drug-sniffing detection canines. During such uses, dogs are subject to sniff parked vehicles, lockers, and everything inside classrooms. I am particularly concerned with the appearance of the dogs at the classrooms. When a drug-sniffing dog is subject to sniff out a classroom, students and teachers in that classroom are told to remove themselves from the classroom, leaving their personal belongings such as jackets, backpacks, and purses behind for the dog to sniff. If the canines indicate to anything, the item would be searched without the property owner's consent. When the canines appear, the school has no individualized suspicion. The school's only intent for using the dogs is to deter drug use.

Can you help me? I don't think this policy is constitutional, and I hope you agree, but I would do anything in my power to get this policy ended. I've also read the topic "Unconstitutional School Search" right below this topic and notice almost a complete match in description. What should I do or what can you do?

Thank you!

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  • Registered: 05-03-2009
  • Posts: 48
  • User Karma: 2

Re: Drug-sniffing policy at my high school

I sent this exact letter to Board member Ryan Luchs's school when he had the same problem (I had the issue myself before that).

I represent a youth rights organization called Americans for Society Free from Age Restrictions (ASFAR), and we regret to inform you that we have received several reports of a number of random drug searches with canine units recently having been conducted at Newbury Park High School. If these searches were indeed conducted, we have reason to believe that they may be in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution. That public school students possess some degree of constitutional rights was established in the Supreme Court Case Tinker v. Des Moines, 393 U.S. 503, 506 (1969).

As to this specific Fourth Amendment issue, school officials are required to possess reasonable suspicion of illegal contraband or criminal activity in order to conduct searches of students, as established by the Supreme Court case New Jersey v. T.L.O, 105 S. Ct. 733, 469 U.S. 325 (1985). It has traditionally been interpreted that reasonable suspicion must be individualized; hence, mass, random searches would violate the Fourth Amendment. It was confirmed in the court case Horton v. Goose Creek, 690 F.2d 470 (CA5 1982), that a dog sniff constituted a search, with a parallel confirmation in the court case B.C. v. Plumas, 192 F.3d 1260 (9th Cir. 1999), that a random, mass search of students by dogs was unconstitutional.

Accordingly, it was the opinion of then California Attorney General Bill Lockyer ("Opinion of the California Attorney General 99-1103"), written in 2000 regarding this issue that “[s]chool administrators at a public high school may not [boldface mine] implement a policy requiring on an unannounced, random, and neutral basis that (1) pupils be directed to vacate their classrooms and leave behind their personal belongings, including backpacks, purses, jackets, and outer garments, for sniffing by canines trained in the detection of drugs, (2) the pupils would proceed to a location not within the immediate vicinity of the canines and would remain away from the canines at all times, and (3) if a canine’s behavior indicated the presence of drugs, the pupil’s personal belongings would be searches by the school administrators without the pupil’s consent.”

As such, it is necessary to inform you of our strong opposition to this policy of random mass drug searches of students’ belongings, and our doubts as to its constitutionality, considering the confirmed unconstitutionality of such searches of students themselves. Please ensure that this policy is dismantled, bearing in mind that students subject to violations of their constitutional rights may reasonably seek injunctive relief against your school or district, as well as compensatory and/or punitive damages pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983.

It can be sent again, under current president Max Harmony's name. Contact him at maxh@sdf.lonestar.org (email and AIM screen name).

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  • Registered: 01-19-2012
  • Posts: 1

Re: Drug-sniffing policy at my high school

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  • Registered: 01-21-2012
  • Posts: 1

Re: Drug-sniffing policy at my high school

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  • Registered: 01-25-2012
  • Posts: 1

Re: Drug-sniffing policy at my high school

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  • Registered: 01-28-2012
  • Posts: 1

Re: Drug-sniffing policy at my high school

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  • Registered: 02-07-2012
  • Posts: 1

Re: Drug-sniffing policy at my high school

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