Tecumseh+v.+Earls

media type="googlemap" key="http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&q=tecumseh,+ok&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Tecumseh,+Pottawatomie,+Oklahoma&t=m&z=12&ll=35.25785,-96.936689&output=embed" width="425" height="350" **1998** In a small rural area in Oklahoma called Tecumseh, the Student Activities Drug Testing Policy was adopted. Under this policy, middle and high school students are required to consent to drug testing to play extra curricular activities and sports.

This usually applied to more competitive activities such as: By agreeing to this policy, you can get randomly drug tested, before an activity or under suspicion. These drug tests recognize illegal drugs like marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, and barbiturates.
 * **Future Farmers of America**
 * **Band, Choir, Pom Pom**
 * **Academic Team**
 * **Athletics**


 * Two individuals decided to go against this policy. **

**__Lindsay Earls__** //- part of show choir, marching band, Academic team, and National Honors Society.//

**__Daniel__** **__James__** //- was soon to be part of the Academic team.//

Alongside their parents, Lindsay Earle and Daniel James argued that this policy violated the fourth amendment. Also, these students argued that there was no known purpose and no spoken benefits to drug testing random students.

On the other side of this argument was the Board of Education of Tecumseh High School. The school district argued that they had "reasonable cause" because they were preventing drug use which is a health and safety risk. It overrides the Fourth Amendment because it is used to prevent the death of students. They argued that the drug tests were not violating the students’ privacy because of the process they used to collect the urine samples. Only those who participated in athletic extracurricular activities were required to give consent to drug tests, however, they argued that they were not discriminating because clubs have always had different rules than athletics. They argued that "Fourth Amendment rights... are different in public schools than elsewhere" because the schools are responsible for the safety of the children.

The case was brought to attention on **March 19, 2002**. The Supreme Court gave its final decision on **June 27, 2002**. The decision of the U.S supreme court is that random drug testing for everyone doing extra-curricular activities is constitutional. The Supreme Court said it was constitutional because it is used to override the 4th amendment because it can keep kids from over dosing. Also, the 4th amendment isn't fully granted to students in public schools because the school has temporary guardianship over the student. Lastly, it wasn't an invasion of privacy because of the process of how the school gathers the urine samples. The U.S Supreme Court had to overturn the decision of the court of Appeals in order to make random drug testing in public schools constitutional. However, the Court of Appeals overturned the district court decision of it being constitutional.

The dissenting justices argued that drug “risks […] are present for all schoolchildren”, so the testing of students in extracurricular activities was not a large “concern for student health and safety.” These extracurricular activities, while voluntary, “are part of the school’s educational program”. Finally, the school did not have proof of a large drug threat. Breyer concurred, but pointed out the urine analysis might be perceived as more invasive than the court had describe it. However, the policy did not subject the whole school. And the court was right to deny “individualized suspicion” as it would allow the district to search far more broadly than the rule the court adopted.

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">This case went through three courts:

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">**__District Court__**//**-**// //ruled in favor of the Board of Education//

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">**__Court of Appeals__**- //ruled in favor of the students, Earls and James//

<span style="font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 120%;">**__Supreme Court__****-** //ruled in favor of the Board of Education//

//**J**////**ustice Clarence Thomas**//

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