May it Please the Court, Suzie, a seventeen year old girl who attended Central High School in Bristol, Virginia, sent inappropriate photos of herself to her boyfriend, Cyrus. Eventually, Cyrus and Suzie broke up and Cyrus forwarded the pictures on to other classmates. Suzie’s parents contacted the school principal, Mrs. Sheevers, about the situation. Cyrus denied the allegations, so Mrs. Sheevers searched Cyrus, and when she could not find the phone on him, she searched his locker and found proof that he had sent the photographs. The search of Cyrus’s cellphone by the school principal was not a violation of his Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable search and seizure.
Although the rights of citizens are extremely important, when a student walks into school, the…show more content… In the case of Vernonia School District v. Acton, it is stated, “The reasonableness of a search is judged by ‘balancing the intrusion on the individual's Fourth Amendment interests against the promotion of legitimate governmental interests’’’ (Vernonia School District v. Acton). The disturbances that were occurring at the school were enough to hinder students’ learning and the principal’s actions were to stop the disruption at school. As declared in the case of New Jersey v. T.L.O., “...against the child’s interest in privacy must be set the substantial interest of teachers and administrators in maintaining discipline in the classroom…” (New Jersey v. T.L.O.). Principal Sheevers’ search was legal because, as a principal, she did not require a warrant, she only needed a equitable reason to search Cyrus’ locker. The search of Cyrus was reasonable and legitimate because his actions against school rules. Although the Fourth Amendment says there must be a probable cause, it has been decided that school officials do not have to take the same precautions as government
