Living Constitution blog 7: The 4th Amendment

1) Source: News Article
Title: Search and Seizure: Fourth Amendment Protects Student Rights, October 1, 2008.
http://media.www.wrighttimes.net/media/storage/paper1129/news/2008/10/01/News/Search.And.Seizure-3481941.shtml

2) Constitutional Connection:
 Amendment 4, Searches and Seizure
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause"

3) Explanation:

         This articles focuses on a school called Humboldt Park and if people feel that the school should have more security or they are fine on security.  The article focuses on security because it talks about all the other shootings at colleges as a result from insufficient security. For example, the Virgina Tech shooting and others. The article talks about if the security should check students bags to see if they had guns or any other types of weapons. The author of the article makes a good point on why security can't just search the students bags. The author talks about how the 4th amendment protects the students, and in order for the security to search they have to go to court and get a search warrant or be under the correct circumstances. A former lawyer stated that it would be very difficult for a security guard to gt the right to search a student, and courts rarely give consent to a search for a student.

        This article connects to the constitution because it relates to the 4th amendment. This article relates to the 4th amendment because the 4th amendment talks about how people should be secure in themselves, houses, papers, and effects and also against unreasonable searches and seizures. Examples from that support this idea is the security guards wouldn't be able to search the students book bags to check for weapons because they would have to get a search warrant. The article also relates to the 4th amendment because it says if a  student had a criminal record that pertained to what the security is accusing them of, or if the security sees them with a weapon they have the right to arrest or search them. This is in relation to the constitution because it relates to probable cause.

      I agree with the 4th amendment. I feel that people shouldn't be searched without any grounds for searching because I feel it isn't fair. Most of the time police or other law enforcement  stop people on the street to check their cars because of their appearance or the way they show themselves, in lack of a better word, and after they stop them, they find out they were actually of offense or they weren't at all. I feel those who are searched without a warrant have the right to sue those law enforcements in retrospect to the rights that are given to them by the 4th amendment. Now in relation to the article I feel the security should be aware of the activities their students perform and how they act, but to a certain extent. They shouldn't accuse someone of holdling a weapon or thinking about bringing a weapon just because of the way they appear, because the person that actually brings the weapon is someone you will never expect.