Opinion of the Court
As Americans, we are protected by our constitutional rights, and these rights have helped separate America from many other countries. We are supposed to be a free country. T.L.O, who was a student whose school violated her fourth amendment has seeked to show that when you go to school, your constitutional rights cannot be taken away from you. By siding with T.L.O, America has made the decision to keep to its roots, and protect all american citizens, and their ability to use their constitutional rights. We have now set a precedent that no students constitutional rights can be taken away, that to search a student you need probable cause, and that the student body will be able to feel safe at school. America has made the right decision. First, no students constitutional rights can be taken away from them once they arrive on their schools campus. In Tinker vs Des Moines, a case brought to the supreme court in 1969, discussing students rights in school, the supreme court decided that student’s constitutional rights should still “work” in school. They stated that “Students don’t shed their constitutional rights at the schoolhouse gates.” This set a precedent that students rights cannot be taken away in school, and by once again siding with the students, you have re -instated how important this precedent is, as well as made sure that in the future no one can challenge the idea that constitutional rights can be taken away. Constitutional rights separate America from all other countries, and by giving all 74.6 million students their rights, we are keeping America, America. Secondly, to be able to justly search a students bag, you are now required to have probable cause. In New Jersey’s brief, it says “If the court rules in T.L.O’s favor, it will set a precedent that you cannot do searches of students possession if under reasonable suspicion.” This tells us that New Jersey wants you to be able to legally search a students possession with just reasonable suspicion, or only 50% certainly. Whereas by siding with T.L.O, you need probable cause, or 75% certainty. Needing probable cause makes way more sense because a to have 50% certainty, the school just needs to prove there is a 50 50 shot. This 50 50 shot could come from a rumor, or someone just believing something. To make the jump to 75%, you need some sort of more substantial evidence to search a student, which will prevent unjust searches from happening. By needing probable cause vs reasonable suspicion, America has decided to prevent unreasonable searches form occurring at school. Lastly, the student body will be able to feel safe at school because they won’t fear being searched unjustly, or that other students could possess weapons that could be used to harm the student body. The supreme court has created a rule which states that if a school doesn’t have probable cause, or is unsure if they do have it, then they can hold onto the bag until they contact authorities to possibly obtain a warrant to get the bag searched. In T.L.O’s brief, it says, “School officials may conduct reasonable warrantless searches of students and subsequently their belongings only if there is reasonable belief that whatever it is they are searching for poses an immediate danger to the student body.” This shows that T.L.O was willing to give up some of her rights if it meant protecting the students from immediate danger. Not only does this rule keep the student body safe (because they won’t have the weapon that is suspected in range to be able to use), but it also protects all of your 4th amendment rights because the student is not being searched, there bag is just being kept until further investigation. The student body is protected, and student’s rights are protected. No students constitutional rights should be taken away from any American citizen no matter how old they are or where they are. We are all protected by these rights that make use Americans, and by taking them away from anyone you would be doing America a disservice. By needing probable cause to search a student you are preventing unjust searches from occurring, and making sure students feel like their rights are protected. Not only will their rights be protected, but they will feel sheltered at school because of the stipulation that schools cannot search students possessions without probable cause; however they can still hold the bag until a warrant has been obtained. Overall, the right decision has been made and we have now secured constitutional rights for all people living in America today, and for days and years to come. It is so ordered.
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December 2018
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