District oversteps authority with handwriting samples

Thank you, Erika Gray, for taking your time (in a Dec. 21 letter to the editor) to bring this subject forward to our community. Believe me, you are not alone in your reprehension and outrage at the school’s administration’s possible illegal behavior.

Unfortunately, there are those who will berate you for standing up for your civil liberties and moral convictions. Such a sad commentary to our community these folks are.  Keep in mind that these same naysayers would also yell and scream if it were their rights that were being abused by authorities. These people are called hypocrites. Avoid them.

If one were to research “blanket searches” on the Web, one would find that our courts have stood against these types of intrusions again and again. These searches have typically taken place in public school settings by police and school authorities. Depending on the situation, when sued in federal court the schools have lost these cases and barred from conducting these types of searches again. Make no mistake that the search that took place at your school was, in fact, a blanket search. It would be interesting if the writers supporting your principal’s action would also support nonwarranted blanket searches of their homes and persons on the whim of authorities. I think not.

Recent case law indicates that searches by school officials constitute state action and are subject to the Fourth Amendment. Standards to be applied to school searches are the probable cause standard and the reasonable suspicion standard. Warrants are not required when a school is pursuing its legitimate interest in maintaining a safe environment. School officials should proceed with a search only on the basis of reasonable suspicion. Police involvement prior to the search requires use of the probable cause standard. The more intrusive the search, the higher the standard required. Generally, blanket searches and strip searches, except in the most extraordinary and exigent circumstances, should be avoided.

There are two reasons that would support that this search was, at best, bad judgment on the part of your principal, Cydney Duffin. The first and foremost is that there was no immediate safety issue at the time of the search. The stated time of the threat’s intention had already come and went. No bomb blew and no shooting had taken place as per the date stated in the writing. Thus, the threat had, by then, became nothing more than a hoax. The crisis had come and gone. If there had been a (blanket) search for the potential threat-maker (with gun or bomb in hand) before the stated date, then the school might have defended its action on the grounds that it was a safety issue that had to be addressed then and there. But that was not the case here. By the time the search was performed the threat was history.

The second thing that comes to mind is that, if asked, I believe you would find that the school district has no Borough-wide policy on this type of search, or any other for that matter. A search policy manual would state how to legally perform searches without overstepping authority. This should be drafted with the help of the school district’s attorney. For a principal to take this type of action without some type of guidance is legal risk taking. If there is no protocol, then the district could be held accountable in court for civil rights abuses. But, why should they care? Any cost of defense would be borne by insurance and the local taxpayer. Think “Bongs For Jesus.”  

We are now living in a new society, Erika. Fear (aka security) is being sold these days, and there is huge profits to be gleaned by selling it. We do have rules by which to abide. One of them is the Fourth Amendment in your and my Bill of Rights. It seems strange that we have to “fight” sometimes to get people to respect our most sacred of rights. So be it.

People sometimes make mistakes when they are scared. I believe this is borne out by this recent situation at your school. As time goes by, I think that you will find that cooler heads will prevail. Welcome to the cool heads club. Maybe you did learn something in that government course you took. It’s obvious many were sleeping in that class.

Bill Stanfill is a Palmer resident.