This Court is specifically confronted with the following issues: (1) whether the investigative procedure used by the school officials with the assistance of law enforcement officers, for the sole and exclusive purpose of furthering a valid educational goal of eliminating drug use within the school, was a seizure and search under the Fourth Amendment; (2) whether the use of dogs to detect marijuana and marijuana paraphernalia in the classroom was, standing alone, a search under the Fourth Amendment; (3) whether the admitted search of a student's clothing upon the continued alert of a trained drug detecting canine was violative of rights protected by the Fourth Amendment; and (4) whether the nude body search conducted solely upon the basis of a trained drug detecting canine's alert violated the plaintiff's right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure. Wood v. Strickland,420 U.S. 308, 95 S. Ct. 992, 43 L. Ed. Subscribers are able to see any amendments made to the case. Tinker v. Des Moines School District, 393 U.S. 503, 89 S.Ct. The latest circuit to find that the dog's actions of sniffing the air outside a defendant's locker was not a search was in United States v. Venema, 563 F.2d 1003, (10th Cir. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Law and American Education : A Case Brief Approach by Karen Palestini Falk and Robert Palestini (2012, Hardcover, Revised edition) at the best online prices at eBay! As was appropriately noted by the New York Court of Appeals in a unanimous opinion. People v. D., supra. 5,429 F. Supp. That immunity exists if the official acts in good faith and not in ignorance or disregard of settled indisputable principles of law. Bellnier v. Lund, 438 F. Supp. Brooks v. Flagg Brothers, Inc., supra. See Baker v. McCollan, ___ U.S. ___, 99 S. Ct. 2689, 61 L. Ed. The class members were then taken to their respective restrooms, the girls to the girls' room by defendants Olson and Butcher, and the boys to the boys' room by defendants Reardon, Parker, and Lund. ." [3] Compare Palacios v. Foltz, 441 F.2d 1196 (10th Cir. that reconciling the privacy interests of children with the needs of schools to maintain order does not require strict adherence to a probable cause standard for Fourth Amendment purposes. 11, 275 N.E.2d 317 (1971), and Gary Teachers Union No. United States District Court, N. D. New York. Moreover, the presence of the dog and its trainer within the classroom, also at the request and supervision of the school officials, was only an aide to that official's observation of students. A canine team visited each classroom in both the Junior and Senior High School buildings. 47 (N.D.N.Y 1977) Searches of Places Students have a limited expectation of privacy of areas such as lockers, which are owned and jointly controlled by the school. The General School Powers Act of the State of Indiana, I.C. 52. And, generally, the Fourth Amendment makes two demands of a government official wishing to carry out a search. That limited in loco parentis relationship modifies the student's Fourth Amendment guarantee of a sphere of privacy which the student can justifiedly expect state officials not to invade. The record here clearly discloses several fatal failures of the plaintiff to meet the elementary requirements of Rule 23. The competing theories seem to be the following: 1) that the Fourth Amendment applies full force, requiring a finding of probable cause before an impartial magistrate before the search could be declared reasonable. 18. Moreover, the law in the area of student searches in public schools is obviously unsettled as suggested by the diversity of the theories and results in the cases cited here. 1998 -NMCA- 51, Kennedy v. Dexter Consolidated Schools, No. Although she wore a jacket with her academy's patch sewn on the sleeve and an American flag patch attached to the other sleeve, she did not wear the uniform of any law enforcement agency. 11. No. 1976). The use of the canine units was decided upon only after the upsurge in drug use at the schools. You also get a useful overview of how the case was received. A city's interest in enforcing a housing code modifies the probable cause requirement. While it would seem self-evident that the actions of a teacher or school official employed by a public municipality board of education would constitute state action under Monroe v. Pape, supra, this has not been a universally held notion among the various federal courts. Burton v. Wilmington Pkg. Defendant Knox was employed in December of 1974 by the Auburn Enlarged City School District as the Superintendent of Schools. Defendant Knox, who in December of 1974, was the Superintendent of Schools of the Auburn Enlarged City School District, has moved for a summary judgment in his favor. 47, 53 (N.D.N.Y.1977). In Lopez, suspension of students by a principal was found to constitute state action where the procedures used and challenged on Due Process grounds were expressly provided for in the Ohio Constitution, and state statutes and corresponding regulations. 665, 667 (C.D.Cal.1988); Bellnier v. Lund, 438 F.Supp. 1 Wigmore, Evidence, Section 177(2) (3d Ed. 4 v. Gary, 152 Ind.App. 1973). Auth.,365 U.S. 715, 725, 81 S. Ct. 856, 862, 6 L. Ed. There, a search was conducted of their desks, books, and once again of their coats. (It should be noted this case went off on the warrant requirement and not the existence of probable cause.). den., 424 U.S. 918, 96 S. Ct. 1121, 47 L. Ed. State v. Mora, supra. 1977); Shipp v. Memphis Area Office Tenn. Dept. Plaintiffs seek legal, injunctive, and declaratory relief in their action, which is maintained under 42 U.S.C. Such a regulation of a student's movement in no way denies that person any constitutionally guaranteed right. [12] See Bronstein, supra, at 464 (Mansfield, J. concurring). This Court cannot say as a matter of law that the alerting of a trained dog standing alone is sufficient to establish reasonable cause to believe a complete body search by school officials in surroundings that insure and maintain human dignity. 2d 752 (1977). The cases of Picha v. Wielgos,410 F. Supp. Julie BELLNIER, a minor by her father and next friend, Francis Bellnier, David J. Leonti, a minor by his father and next friend, Victor A. Leonti, Sr., Plaintiffs, v. Gordon W. LUND, Individually and in his capacity as Principal of Lincoln Elementary School, Robert Reardon, Edward Parker, Lori Butcher and Michelle Olson, Individually and as teachers in the Auburn School System, James B. Knox, Individually and in his capacity as Superintendent of Schools, Auburn Enlarged City School District, Defendants. Therefore, this Court finds no seizure of the plaintiff or other students within the Senior and Junior High School prior to any alert by the trained dogs. Plaintiff must attend the scheduled classes for the times designated. Moreover, there was a feeling, at least by some students including the plaintiff, that peer pressure existed in favor of using drugs while on campus. 1977). Ms. Patricia L. Little is the owner and operator of the Edelheim Police K-9 Academy in Bunker Hill, Indiana. Thus, in State v. Young, supra, a well reasoned opinion, the Georgia Supreme Court found three categories of searches, for purposes of the Fourth Amendment: 1) wholly private searches, with no Fourth Amendment applicability; 2) state action, but no involvement of law enforcement agents, so that the Fourth Amendment applies, but not the Exclusionary Rule; and 3) search by law enforcement agents, to which both the Fourth Amendment and the Exclusionary Rule apply in toto. Although they were obviously clothed with their state authority, they had previously agreed that no arrests would be made as a result of any drugs found that morning. It has long been established that law enforcement personnel can and must use the basic human senses in the detection of crime. Therefore, the nude search of plaintiff was unlawful because it did violate her Fourth Amendment right against an unreasonable search and seizure. 2d 824 (1979). Bringing these nonschool personnel into the classroom to aid the school administrators in their observation for drug abuse is, of itself, not a search. Whether or not the Exclusionary Rule is coextensive with the Fourth Amendment, and hence applicable in a criminal action based upon a search such as that now in issue, is subject to considerable speculation. In U. S. v. Solis, the 9th Circuit at 536 F.2d 882 stated: Neither does the reasoning or result in Katz v. U. S.,389 U.S. 347, 88 S. Ct. 507, 19 L. Ed. of Emp. Fourteen handlers and their dogs participated during the inspection. Except for the five minute interval when the canine unit entered the room, plaintiff and all other students were exposed only to a longer than normal first period class. (Although cases predating T.L.O., see, e.g., Bellnier v. Lund. Jurisdiction is alleged to exist by virtue of 28 U.S.C. 515 (S.D.Ind.1970). It was not unusual for students to be kept in their classrooms longer than the normal periods. This case is therefore an appropriate one for a summary judgment. Each of the students entered the classroom and placed his outer garment in a coatroom located wholly within, and accessible only from, the classroom. To be sure, the question may be close when the situation is frozen as of the time the search took place. 2d 649 (1976); U. S. v. Martinez-Miramontes, 494 F.2d 808 (9th Cir. See also, Bouse v. Hipes, 319 F. Supp. Super. No. BELLNIER v. LUND Email | Print | Comments ( 0) No. Four such teams were used in the Senior High School building and two were operating in the Junior High School rooms. People v. D., supra; see also 1 Blackstone's Commentaries 453 (18th Ed. State action is generally found to exist when what is involved is the exercise of power possessed only because the wrongdoer is clothed with the authority of state. The students were then asked to empty their pockets and remove their shoes. 466, 47 C.M.R. United States v. Solis, 536 F.2d 880 (9th Cir. In this case, the teacher initiated a strip search after being informed by 1974). Adams v. Pate, 445 F.2d 105 (7th Cir. [12] United States v. Fulero (footlocker); United States v. Bronstein (suitcase); United States v. Solis (semi-trailer); United States v. Venema (rented locker). Sign up for our free summaries and get the latest delivered directly to you. You already receive all suggested Justia Opinion Summary Newsletters. 780 (D.S.Dak.S.D.1973). 259 (1975). v. NATIONAL SCREEN SERV. 1981 et seq. It is clear from these provisions that the state has sufficiently interjected itself into the public school systems for this Court to find state action in the present case. As *1022 the Supreme Court of the United States stated in Katz v. United States,389 U.S. 347, 88 S. Ct. 507, 19 L. Ed. 17710, United States District Courts. LEGION, United States District Court, E. D. Carey v. Piphus, 430 U.S. 964, 97 S. Ct. 1642, 52 L. Ed. Plaintiff further alleges that being subjected to the nude search that morning violated her right against unreasonable search and seizure. 53 VI. This is an action whereby the plaintiff children, through their parents comme next friends, seek redress for an allegedly unlawful strip search claimed to have been conducted or condoned by defendants, all of whom are employed by the Auburn Enlarged City School District in one capacity or another. at 292.[13]. The Supreme Court of the United States has long recognized that such odors can be convincing evidence of probable cause. 108, 296 A.2d 102 (1972); see also Shaw, Admissibility, in Criminal Cases, of Evidence Obtained by Search Conducted by School Official or Teacher, 49 A.L.R.3d 978; 4) the Fourth Amendment applies in full, requiring a finding of probable cause in order for a search to be reasonable. 47, 54 (N. D. N. Y. Rptr. It is well known that a patrol dog is endowed by nature with qualities of hearing and smell that appear to be superior to those of humans. In this case, acting as school officials, the defendants proceeded with a careful and sensitive plan that was formulated with much concern for basic educational values. 215 (E.D.Pa.1976), both 1983 actions involving student searches, and cited by both parties in their memoranda, clearly hinged in their holdings upon police involvement in the searches, a factor not present in this case. A review of the pleadings, as supplemented by the affidavits of defendants Lund, Reardon, Parker, Butcher, and Knox, reveals that, with one minor exception which will not affect the outcome of the pending motion, there are no material issues of fact to be determined with respect to the question of defendants' liability. Dist. We rely on donations for our financial security. In other words, an invasion of that sphere of privacy is a search under the terms of the Fourth Amendment. United States State Supreme Court (California), United States State Supreme Court (New Jersey), New Mexico Court of Appeals of New Mexico. 2d 752 (1977). 47 (N.D.N.Y.1977). In Lopez, suspension of students by a principal was found to constitute state action where the procedures used and challenged on Due Process grounds were expressly provided for in the Ohio Constitution, and state statutes and corresponding regulations. Answers:SelectedAnswer: b. Morse v. Frederick a. Document Cited authorities 50 Cited in 35 Precedent Map Related Vincent 438 F. Supp. Moreover, the decision to strip search an individual student was solely the responsibility of the school officials. Patricia Little, likewise, did not participate in the illegal search, moreover, she in no way indicated to the school officials that such illegal searches were necessary at the Highland Schools. 1975). On the morning of December 6, 1974, plaintiffs and their classmates, members of the fifth grade class at Auburn's Lincoln Elementary School, arrived at the classroom in their usual fashion. 47 - BELLNIER v. LUND, United States District Court, N. D. New York. Border searches are subject to a modified probable cause requirement and are excepted from the warrant requirement. GALFORD v. MARK ANTHONY B on CaseMine. Custodians were present near all locked doors to provide immediate exit if necessary. Therefore, this Court finds that the defendant school officials are immune from liability arising out of the search and are entitled to summary judgment on the issue of monetary damages. No student was treated with any malice nor was the operation planned in a way so as to embarrass any particular student. 47 Bellnier v. Lund 48 Vernonia Sch. at 206, 498 F.2d at 748; Bronstein, supra, at 460; Solis, supra, at 881; Venema, supra, at 1004, 1005. Baltic Ind. In Moore v. Student Affairs Committee of Troy State University,284 F. Supp. Dunaway v. New York,--- U.S. ----, ----, 99 S. Ct. 2248, 60 L. Ed. Pendergast did not participate in the illegal search of plaintiff Doe, nor does any evidence show he conducted the search. Ass'n, 362 F.Supp. This Court does not, therefore, find the actions of Little during the morning in question to have violated any of plaintiff's constitutional rights. 1971) aff'd, 30 N.Y.2d 734, 333 N.Y.S.2d 167, 284 N.E.2d 153 (1972); In re C.,26 Cal. Request a trial to view additional results. Subscribers can access the reported version of this case. K.C.L.Rev. Since no search was performed up until the time the dogs alerted, no warrant was necessary for the initial observation by the school officials. Sometime that morning, and prior to the commencement of class, plaintiff Leonti complained to defendant Olson that he was missing $3.00 from his coat pocket. The pocket search was conducted in furtherance of the school's legitimate interest in eliminating drug trafficking within the school. It is also very clear from the record that some students in this high school are not in sympathy with the claims and contentions of this plaintiff. This Court first distinguishes Katz from this case on the basis that this is not a police action and second, that the students did not have a justifiable expectation of privacy that would preclude a school administrator from sniffing the air around the desks with the aid of a trained drug detecting canine. Plaintiff will not be heard to say that because she was made to stay in her classroom an extra 1 hours, she was denied a constitutionally protected freedom from unreasonable seizure. 75-CV-237. was granted in October of 1983. Updated daily, vLex brings together legal information from over 750 publishing partners, providing access to over 2,500 legal and news sources from the worlds leading publishers. This Court now denies plaintiff's request for certification of a class pursuant to 23(a) and (b) (2) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. 4 About this product Product Information This third edition expands coverage on such topics as the law and students with disabilities, confidentiality, sexual harassment, student searches and tuition vouchers. Bellnier v. Lund, 438 F. Supp. Dist., 26 F.Supp.2d 1189, 1201 (D.S.D.1998); Oliver, 919 F.Supp. The Supreme Court established in New Jersey v. T.L.O. United States District Court, N. D. Indiana, Hammond Division. 1214 (N.D.Ill., E.D.1976), and Potts v. Wright,357 F. Supp. [13] This Court notes the state of the law is unclear as to whether the Fourth Amendment and its coordinate remedy, the Exclusionary Rule, apply in full force to searches of students. 1974). Perez v. Sugarman, 499 F.2d 761 (2d Cir. 47 (N.D.N.Y. There is also a basic burden to demonstrate that the plaintiff will be an adequate representative of the other members of a class. The plaintiff further seeks to have the complained of activities of the named defendants permanently enjoined. Upon being asked to enter the inner office, two women introduced themselves to the plaintiff. Get free access to the complete judgment in STATE EX REL. 1983 in an action for declaratory judgment and damages. See, 28 U.S.C. 1985. Because of the constant interaction among students, faculty and school administrators, a public school student cannot be said to enjoy any absolute expectation of privacy while in the classroom setting. Care was taken by the school officials to provide custodians at each exit in case an emergency arose. In the "rare instance" where it is proper to seek guidance from outside this circuit, the . A light relaxed atmosphere was created. Buss, The Fourth Amendment and Searches of Students in Public Schools, 59 Iowa L.Rev. Moore v. Student Affairs Committee of Troy State Univ.,284 F. Supp. 1589, 43 L.Ed.2d 790 (1975); Note, School and School Officials, 78 W.Va.L.Rev. See also W. RINGEL, SEARCHES & SEIZURES, ARRESTS AND CONFESSIONS 18.1 (1984). This case is therefore an appropriate one for a summary judgment. App. 1975), cert. Bellnier v. Lund, 438 F. Supp. 1974), cert. For example, twelve students killed by students in the Columbine High School shooting; Twenty students killed in the Sandy Hook shooting. Northwestern Sch. Upon removal, her clothing was briefly examined, her hair was lifted to determine if any substances were hidden in it, and she was immediately permitted to dress. Little and her dog were accompanied by a school official and a Highland Police officer during her portion of the inspection, limited only to the Senior High School. She was quietly escorted to a nurse's station in the Junior High School and was asked to remain in the waiting room. Chambers v. Maroney,399 U.S. 42, 90 S. Ct. 1975, 26 L. Ed. 1343(3) and 1343(4). 741-742; see also Mapp v. Ohio,367 U.S. 643, 81 S. Ct. 1684, 6 L. Ed. 1978); and Miller v. Motorola, Inc., 76 F.R.D. Jurisdiction in this matter for purposes of deciding any and all questions concerning plaintiffs' request for an injunction against the named defendants is pursuant to 28 U.S.C. den., 421 U.S. 921, 95 S. Ct. 1589, 43 L. Ed. The schools' administrators delegated by the state with the duty and responsibility to maintain order, discipline, safety and education within the school system supervised the investigation which was designed with the single purpose of eliminating drug use inside the school buildings. It is settled case law that school officials possess a qualified immunity with respect to acts performed within the course of their duties. 340, 367 N.E.2d 949 (1977). 2nd Circuit. 441 F.2d 299 - WILLIAMS v. DADE COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit. Id. State action is generally found to exist when what is involved is the exercise of power possessed only because the wrongdoer is clothed with the authority of state. Thus, when a teacher conducts a highly intrusive invasion such as the strip . Bellnier v. Lund, 438 F. Supp. As a result of the investigation seventeen students were found in possession of drugs; twelve of those students withdrew voluntarily from school and three students were expelled pursuant to the due process statutes of the State of Indiana. What level of information is necessary must be determined on a case by case basis, however, this Court holds the lesser standard of a "reasonable cause to believe" applicable in such a determination. Ala.1968); M. v. Bd. Subjecting a student to a nude search is more than just the mild inconvenience of a pocket search, rather, it is an intrusion into an individual's basic justifiable expectation of privacy. Burton v. Wilmington Pkg. The atmosphere within the Highland Junior and Senior High Schools was one of frustration on the part of school administrators and faculty brought about by their inability to control or arrest the drug use problem. During the inspection, a dog alerted[5] to a particular student on approximately fifty occasions. Although unknown by the students, those uniformed officers in the halls that morning were under orders not to pursue any students outside the building. Drug use within the school became an activity the school administrator wished to eliminate. In such a case, there must be adherence to the protections required by the Fourth Amendment. School Principals, 375 F.Supp. Advanced A.I. 1972); In re G. C., 121 N.J.Super. 47 (N.D.N.Y. No incidents of disruption occurred in the classrooms because of the presence of the dogs or the teams. Having that requisite reasonable cause to believe that the plaintiff was concealing narcotics, the defendants did not violate the plaintiff's Fourth Amendment rights by ordering her to empty her pockets onto the desk. Searches of Places Plaintiff was asked if she had ever used marijuana to which she answered she had not. There is a heavy if not total carryover of the ideas expressed to administration of the public schools. On March 7, 1980, a teacher at Piscataway High School in Middlesex County, N. J., discovered two girls smoking in a lavatory. Although a trained dog is certainly more discriminative than electronic detection devices, United States v. Bronstein, supra, at 462, 463, it only alerts to the odor of the substance, not the substance itself. and Educ. Dogs have long been used in police work. Subscribers are able to see a list of all the cited cases and legislation of a document. This Court finds the reasoning utilized in Moore v. Student Affairs Committee of Troy State University, supra, and State v. Young, supra, that of applying the Fourth Amendment but with a lesser standard than probable cause with respect to student searches, to be the more persuasive. BELLNIER v. LUND Email | Print | Comments (0) No. Spence v. Staras, 507 F.2d 554 (7th Cir. I.C. 791 (S.D.N.Y.1974), aff'd, 506 F.2d 1395 (2d Cir. However, in matters concerning the reasonable exercise of supervision and authority by school officials, this Court recognizes that a certain balancing occurs between an individual student's rights and the school administrator's need to protect all students and the educational process. 1976) (a three way split on critical issues); U. S. v. Paulson, 7 M.J. 43 (April 9, 1979), reversing on other grounds 2 M.J. 326 (A.F.C.M.R. The school officials insisted, and the police agreed, that no criminal investigations would occur as a result of any evidence recovered during the school investigation. In Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520, 578 (1979) (Marshall, J., dis- senting), Justice Marshall used the phrase to describe routine strip searches of prisoners after contact visits. Wood v. Strickland, supra, 420 U.S. at 321, 95 S. Ct. 992. School officials fulfilling their state empowered duties will not be held to the same standards as law enforcement officials when determining if the use of canines is necessary to detect drugs within the schools. 47 (N.D.N.Y.1977); People v. Scott D., supra, fn. In all other aspects, plaintiff's prayer for declaratory relief is now DENIED. The school officials, therefore, had outside independent evidence indicating drug abuse within the school. The students were there ordered to strip down to their undergarments, and their clothes were searched.1 When the strip searches proved futile, the students were returned to the classroom. John P. McQuillan, Gary, Ind., Rhett L. Tauber, Merrillville, Ind., Leon R. Kaminski, Edward L. Volk, LaPorte, Ind., Charles H. Criss, Peru, Ind., David E. Mears, Charles L. Zandstra, Highland, Ind., Jerome H. Torshen, Stephen C. Leckar, Chicago, Ill., for defendants. Rptr. They often accompany police officers on night patrol in detection through sound and scent of would-be criminals lurking in the dark or moving in stealth. App. 1974) In Re Ronald B., 61 AD2d 204 (1978) People v. Haskins, 48 AD2d 480 (1975) People v. Overton, 24 NY2d 522 (1967) Opinion of Counsel, 1 EDR 800 (1959) Opinion of Counsel, 1 EDR 766 (1952) This element, loosely termed as "state action", is highly amorphous, and is generally determined on a case-by-case basis after an analysis of the facts involved. Each team consisted of a school administrator or teacher, a dog and its handler and a uniformed police officer. In United States v. Fulero, 162 U.S.App.D.C. A review of the pleadings, as supplemented by the affidavits of defendants Lund, Reardon, Parker, Butcher, and Knox, reveals that, with one minor exception which will not affect the outcome of the pending motion, there are no material issues of fact to be determined with respect to the question of defendants' liability. Moreover, uniformed police officers are, unfortunately, not an uncommon sight in today's public schools. Testimony at trial indicated the students used several types of drugs including alcohol, marijuana, and PCP, an animal tranquilizer. She was not armed. Furthermore, the presence of the uniformed police officer in the room, at the request of the school official and with the agreement that no arrests would occur as a result of finding any drugs upon students, did not alter the basic function of the school official's activities. . At this meeting, the school administrators informed the police officers that they intended to conduct an investigation within the school buildings using canine units to detect and remove any narcotics or narcotic paraphernalia. technology developed exclusively by vLex editorially enriches legal information to make it accessible, with instant translation into 14 languages for enhanced discoverability and comparative research. The school community of Highland has, among several elementary schools, a Junior and Senior High School. omitted) ("[n]o one would seriously dispute that a nude search of a child is traumatic"); Bellnier v. Lund, 438 F. Supp. In doing so the Court must take into account the special duties and responsibilities imposed upon school officials to provide a safe atmosphere for a student to develop, the attendant limited powers which the school officials possess in loco parentis to effectuate the maintenance of proper discipline. People trafficking in illegal narcotics often attempt to conceal the odor. Each classroom teacher was instructed to keep their students in the first period class and to have them perform their customary work. Presentation of any evidence of possible damages was reserved until this Court's determination on the above issues.
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