Safford Unified School Dist Case Brief

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Case Name, Citation, Year
Safford Unified School Dist. #1 v. Redding 557 U.S. 364 (2009)
Facts of the Case
Redding was an eighth grade student, who was suspected of having over the counter drugs on school grounds. Over the counter drugs on school grounds is a violation of school policy. School officials’ strip searched Redding based off of a tip they received from another student at the school. Redding filed suit against the administrators who administered the search. She claimed that her Fourth Amendment rights of an unreasonable search were violated. A district court threw out the case but Redding appealed the case, which was threw out again on the initial appeal, but after being reheard a second time the court of appeals found that the young …show more content…

I feel that Redding’s rights were definitely violated. There was no reason to search a student based off of a tip from another. I feel at most Redding should have been questioned, made empty her pockets, and possibly patted down by a female staff member. In my opinion the administrators should have been held liable for their decisions. It doesn’t matter that the search fell under school policies. As an adult that has went through an educational program every official involved should have known that strip searching an eighth grade girl wasn’t right. I feel that every official involved in the strip search should have been held liable and at least hope that they were terminated by the school district.
Implications
I feel that this case set certain limitations on strip searches in the school setting. This case set clear guidelines on how an administrator should perform a search and whether or not the areas searched or justifiable for the situation. I also feel that this case set an unwritten law that strip searches on school grounds are unlawful. This case not only made the public aware of specific guidelines involving strip searches but it also gave lower courts a set of guidelines to use for future cases involving these type of

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