Students' Vehicles Subject To Search On School Property
11/13/08 - On Monday, an Appellate Division panel, in a case titled ,State v. Best, ruled that a student’s car or truck which is parked on school property can be searched by school officials if a mere reasonable suspicion exists that illegal drugs or other contraband are contained within the car or truck. This case continues to erode the Constitutional protections against searches on school property. The school officials or police no longer need probable cause or a search warrant for these searches.
This case follows a foundation started by the United States Supreme Court in a case called New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325 (1985). Essentially, holding that there is a diminished expectation of privacy to which students are subjected to on school property. This diminished expectation of privacy has resulted in rulings that have authorized searches of school lockers and book bags based upon reasonable suspicion.
