The Fourth Amendment Rights in Higher Education

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Fourth Amendment and Student Rights
Conclusion
References

Introduction

The people residing in the United States are protected by the Constitution, and their privacy and the right to not experience an invasion of their property are also an element of this legislation. However, there are several exceptions and cases when the state’s well-being and safety allow the government agents to invade the privacy of individuals, for example, to perform searches and seizures.

These cases are the exceptions, although there has been a debate and several Supreme Court cases that are related to this Amendment and the rights of specific groups of people under it. Although the Fourth Amendment guarantees the privacy rights of students, the practical examples and court cases suggest that in some instances, college administration can perform searches with a mere language announcement of such actions and without having to obtain a warrant. This paper will analyze the applicability of the Fourth Amendment to the searches and seizures performed by colleges and whether this legislation protects the privacy of the students who live on campus.

Fourth Amendment and Student Rights

Firstly, it is necessary to define the Fourth Amendment and discuss the purpose and outcome of this legislation is. According to the United States Courts (2021), “The Constitution, through the Fourth Amendment, protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures by the government” (para. 1). However, this legislation does not apply to all cases and has several exceptions, which allow government officials to perform searches. This Amendment defines the types of searches and their purpose that are deemed as reasonable and can be justified under the laws of the United States. Therefore, the basic principle of this Amendment is that the citizens of the United States should not be searched, and their property cannot be seized unless the case is a threat to the safety of the country and the public.

Secondly, one should understand the balance between the outcome of the search and the violation of the person’s rights. Morris (1969) states that this Amendment allows the searches and seizures in cases that are of public safety importance. Lemons (2012) argues that students perceive their dormitory rooms as private places, and there is a reasonable expectation that their privacy rights will not be violated in these places. These dormitories become the homes of the students during their studies, which from the viewpoint of the student-institution relationship should mean that the latter must respect the privacy and rights of the former. However, dormitories also house a large number of students, and the universities are responsible for their safety, which creates a space for interpreting the Fourth Amendment in a way that allows for searches on campus.

Another factor that predetermines the possibility of a search and seizure is the location where these actions take place. For example, schools have to have a warrant before performing a search of the individual’s property (United States Courts, 2021). One case that demonstrates this approach is the Trustees of the Dartmouth College V. Woodward, 17 U.S. 518 (1819). This college was originally established as a religious-based institution that promoted the values that aligned with its mission.

However, this school received funds from the Federalist trustees, and the goal of this case was to convert this college into a private institution, which would not focus on religion and the integration of religion into education (Lemons, 2012). The Darthmund’s trustees claimed that the government of New Hampshire violated their constitutional rights by attempting to commit the conversion (Lemons, 2012). Hence, this case is an example of the conflict between the state and the private college’s trustees regarding the property rights and the ability of these trustees to make important decisions regarding the values and teaching standards at this institution.

A search warrant is not always necessary when performing searches in dorm rooms or sororities located on the campus of a university. According to Fossey (2018), this Amendment clearly guarantees the rights of the students who reside on the campus, and their privacy and property rights cannot be violated by the institutions’ administrations. Therefore, to perform a search, the administration has to obtain a warrant, which would require them to collect evidence and prove the necessity of such actions. All other instances of such searches are unconstitutional, and students have the right to protect their privacy.

However, Fossey (2018) and Alazmi (2018) argue that the same rules do not apply to non-students and individuals who do not reside on campus, which means that the administration can perform a search of such people if deemed necessary. Moreover, Fossey (2018) argues that “if the search is authorized by language in a housing contract or a reasonable regulation adopted to maintain safety, security, and an educational environment conducive to learning” (p. 10).

Morris (1969) argues that these searches are justified if the authorities have a sound underlying reason, such as the concerns regarding the University’s safety. A more recent example is the New Jersey v. TLO: 469 US 325 (1985), where the issue was the reasoning behind a search. This ruling suggests that if the administration has a proper justification for these actions, they do not have to obtain a search warrant.

The applicability of the Fourth Amendment to the searches and seizures performed on campus should be examined from the student-institution relationship viewpoint. In this regard, the colleges are the owners of the property that is situated on their campuses, which would provide them with the freedom to carry out the searcher. However, the property in the rooms where the students reside, although temporarily, belongs to these individuals, which evidently creates a conflict and a need to examine the Fourth Amendment’s applicability to this scenario with details.

Conclusion

In summary, this paper is the examination of the Fourth Amendment, which is the legislative guarantee that people in this state cannot be searched and their property shall not be taken from them without a sound justification. The main way to justify such actions is by citing a public safety concern. The cases such as the New Jersey v. TLO:: 469 US 325 (1985) show that these institutions do not have to obtain a search warrant.

However, their justification for these actions must be reasonable, for example, the concern regarding the safety of the students. Hence, although dormitories and sororities are the homes for the students residing in them, the student-institution relationship paradigm allows the latter to perform searches. These can be announced verbally, without any prior notification; however, the court cases and current legislations require the institution to justify their actions. Considering the responsibility of the universities to protect multiple students who reside on their campuses, the searches are justifiable even considering the Fourth Amendment.

References

Alazmi, A. (2018). Student privacy under the Fourth Amendment: Implications of student privacy at public colleges and universities in USA. 2018 IACB, ICTE Proceedings, 341-356.

Fossey, R. (2018). Students at public universities have a constitutional right to privacy in their dormitory rooms. Journal of College and University Student Housing, 44(3), 62-79.

Morris, J. (1969). Comment, the dormitory student’s Fourth Amendment Right to Privacy: Fact or fiction? Santa Clara Lawyer, 143, 1-10.

Lemons, B. R. (2012). Public education and student privacy: Application of the fourth amendment to dormitories at public colleges and universities. Brigham Young University Education and Law Journal, 2012(1), 1-10.

New Jersey v. TLO: 469 US 325. (1985).

The Trustees of the Dartmouth College V. Woodward, 17 U.S. 518. (1819).

United States Courts. (2021). What does the Fourth Amendment mean? Web.

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The Fourth Amendment Rights in Higher Education

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