Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Blog Overview
Good job with these blogs, James! Very thorough answers. You are missing Blog #3 and Blog #12, and your extra credit blog will cover one of these. -Ms. J.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Extra Credit Blog
Citing at least one specific passage from either reading, respond to the following questions:
1. What do the judges and lawyers seem to be debating in deciding this case? Which argument do you feel is the strongest and why?
If this was clear violation of her 4th amendment rights illegal search and seizure of property, and making her strip in front of the principle and the vice principle. Also this is just a humiliating situation to put a 13 year old girl in, in the article justice takes on strip searches quoted Ginsburg was also the toughest questioner of Wright, calling the events of the day "humiliating" for Redding and saying school officials searched her on the basis of the other girl's accusations "with no questions asked at all."
Roberts asked the lawyers if the court could simply decide the case by agreeing that school officials could not be sued for their actions. The split decisions of lower courts and the justices' own reactions to whether the search was constitutional make it evident that the law is not clear, the chief justice said (Robert, 1). I feel that Reddings rights were clearly violated, teh school failed to call her parents, it failed to provide a legal search, it went on the word of two 13 year old students, and made her strip infront of two grown men.
2. You are a school administrator, and you have received word that the Supreme Court ruled that strip searches are allowed in middle schools to prevent illegal possession and distribution of drugs. However, you worry that this could open up the school to unnecessary lawsuits. You have no choice but to implement strip searches, but you decide that they should only be conducted in a certain manner and under strict criteria. What would this entail? Provide specific details of your plan in your answer.
The searches would have to be conducted by an individual of the same sex boys with male teachers, or police officers, and girls, with female teachers, or police officers. They would then have to follow the letter of the law because when it comes to peoples children you have to be safe and make sure the child isn't humiliated. I would also recommend that the individual involved in the search need to take a course to make sure they are properly trained in performing legal searches. Also I would want to have an on-sight physiologist to talk to the kids to make sure they aren't to traumatized by the situation, and to also inform the parent before we perform any kind of search. That way they have the opportunity to have a lawyer present if they want, or to at least be present wile the search is going on.
3. If the school would have found a large quantity of prescription-strength Ibuprofen in Savana Redding's possession, would that change your opinion about whether the strip search was warranted? If you said "yes," what do you recommend the school should have done in her case to prevent a lawsuit, since she didn't possess the drugs?
Yes it would have changed the situation for one it would have meant that they would have legal grounds to give a strip search not just the word of a two 13 year old students who were already in trouble and didn't care if they took any one else down with them. Next the principle needed to call the parents before they decided to do anything in my opinion they failed big time. If the parent gives the go ahead to let the school perform the search then go ahead, but if you don't have permission then you have to wait either till the parent gets there or a lawyer is present to make sure the child's rights aren't violated like they were in this case.
4. Once you finish this blog, please e-mail Ms. Johnson at tjohnsoa@gmu.edu, and in the subject line, type "Extra Credit Blog." No message is necessary. You do not have to e-mail the blog to me. Since I have 60 students, letting me know you did an extra blog will help me to quickly go through and check the blogs.Photograph by Chris Hinkle for The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2009/03/24/us/24savana_CA0.inline.ready.html
1. What do the judges and lawyers seem to be debating in deciding this case? Which argument do you feel is the strongest and why?
If this was clear violation of her 4th amendment rights illegal search and seizure of property, and making her strip in front of the principle and the vice principle. Also this is just a humiliating situation to put a 13 year old girl in, in the article justice takes on strip searches quoted Ginsburg was also the toughest questioner of Wright, calling the events of the day "humiliating" for Redding and saying school officials searched her on the basis of the other girl's accusations "with no questions asked at all."
Roberts asked the lawyers if the court could simply decide the case by agreeing that school officials could not be sued for their actions. The split decisions of lower courts and the justices' own reactions to whether the search was constitutional make it evident that the law is not clear, the chief justice said (Robert, 1). I feel that Reddings rights were clearly violated, teh school failed to call her parents, it failed to provide a legal search, it went on the word of two 13 year old students, and made her strip infront of two grown men.
2. You are a school administrator, and you have received word that the Supreme Court ruled that strip searches are allowed in middle schools to prevent illegal possession and distribution of drugs. However, you worry that this could open up the school to unnecessary lawsuits. You have no choice but to implement strip searches, but you decide that they should only be conducted in a certain manner and under strict criteria. What would this entail? Provide specific details of your plan in your answer.
The searches would have to be conducted by an individual of the same sex boys with male teachers, or police officers, and girls, with female teachers, or police officers. They would then have to follow the letter of the law because when it comes to peoples children you have to be safe and make sure the child isn't humiliated. I would also recommend that the individual involved in the search need to take a course to make sure they are properly trained in performing legal searches. Also I would want to have an on-sight physiologist to talk to the kids to make sure they aren't to traumatized by the situation, and to also inform the parent before we perform any kind of search. That way they have the opportunity to have a lawyer present if they want, or to at least be present wile the search is going on.
3. If the school would have found a large quantity of prescription-strength Ibuprofen in Savana Redding's possession, would that change your opinion about whether the strip search was warranted? If you said "yes," what do you recommend the school should have done in her case to prevent a lawsuit, since she didn't possess the drugs?
Yes it would have changed the situation for one it would have meant that they would have legal grounds to give a strip search not just the word of a two 13 year old students who were already in trouble and didn't care if they took any one else down with them. Next the principle needed to call the parents before they decided to do anything in my opinion they failed big time. If the parent gives the go ahead to let the school perform the search then go ahead, but if you don't have permission then you have to wait either till the parent gets there or a lawyer is present to make sure the child's rights aren't violated like they were in this case.
4. Once you finish this blog, please e-mail Ms. Johnson at tjohnsoa@gmu.edu, and in the subject line, type "Extra Credit Blog." No message is necessary. You do not have to e-mail the blog to me. Since I have 60 students, letting me know you did an extra blog will help me to quickly go through and check the blogs.Photograph by Chris Hinkle for The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2009/03/24/us/24savana_CA0.inline.ready.html
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