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Constitution Day September 17. Constitution Day reminds us of our important rights and responsibilities under law. The Constitution was drafted in 1787 four years after the Revolutionary War ended. The U.S. Constitution.
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Constitution Day September 17 Constitution Day reminds us of our important rights and responsibilities under law.
The Constitution was drafted in1787four years after the Revolutionary War ended
The U.S. Constitution The final draft of the Constitution was completed on September 17, 1787. It was officially adopted on June 21, 1788, when New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify it. This photo shows where representatives from Massachusetts ratified it four months earlier.
The Constitution has been amended27 timesWhat do we call the first10 amendments?
Who drafted theBill of Rights? James Madison, who later became the 4th President of the United States of America. Can you name any of the Amendments in the Bill of Rights?
Q: Can you guess a reason why Americans wanted to be free from British rule? A: The British government was going into Americans’ homes and arresting them without good reason.
Q: Which Amendment to the Constitution provides protection against having your home entered and being arrested without a good reason? A: The Fourth Amendment.
Today’s Lesson: United States ConstitutionThe 4th Amendment: Search and Seizure
The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states: • "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, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis said the Fourth Amendment is “the right to be let alone” What word describes the right to be let alone? Privacy Who is required to follow the Fourth Amendment and give us privacy? Our parents? Our schools? The government?
Exceptions to the Rule • Can anyone think of a reason why someone should not have the right to privacy? • Is it sometimesarguable whether someone should have the right to privacy? • Who decides such an argument? • State Court System • Federal Court System
Today you get to play the role of a United States Supreme Court Justice • Q. Does anyone know how many U.S. Supreme Court justices there are? • Q. Can you name them? Neil Gorsuch Brett Kavanaugh Sonia Sotomayor Elena Kagan Clarence Thomas Samuel Alito Stephen Breyer Chief Justice John Roberts John Roberts Ruth Bader Ginsburg
8th Grade Case • Although school had let out at 3:00 p.m., Mr. Jones, the 8th grade social studies teacher, had stayed behind to finish grading the pop quiz he had given out earlier in the day. Now it was 5:30 and he was heading out to his car in the school parking lot. As he approached his car, he noticed a group of students huddled in the corner of the school playground. He recognized them as his students from 5th period social studies: Robyn, Regan, Bailey, and Shawn.
Just as he was wondering what they were still doing at school so late, he witnessed Robyn hand Shawn what appeared to be a wad of cash. Shawn then, not so discreetly, handed Robyn a clear plastic bag with a green plant-like substance inside. As soon as the transaction was over, Robyn placed the bag into a backpack and the students quickly dispersed in separate directions. Mr. Jones could not believe his eyes or shake the feeling that he had just witnessed these students conduct a drug deal on school property. Snapping back to reality, Mr. Jones quickly contacted the school principal who then contacted the sheriff’s department.
The next day, Robyn, Regan, Bailey, and Shawn were sitting in home room listening to the morning announcements when the school principal alerted the teachers that the classrooms were now under lockdown. A panic spread among the students as they whispered about what the cause may be, and the teachers stood guard at the doors. After a minute, a flurry of activity erupted in the hallways as heavy footsteps and the sound of barking dogs grew louder. The students rushed to the doors to steal a peak at what was causing the commotion and to their dismay saw an army of sheriff’s deputies storming the halls with their highly trained canines. Panic erupted among the students as they realized a full drug search of their lockers was under way.
Each time the dogs indicated drugs were contained in a locker, the student to whom the locker belonged was called over the loud speaker to the scene as the locker and its contents were searched. In total, drugs were found in seven students’ lockers, including Robyn and Shawn but not Regan and Bailey. The students were marched to the principal’s office where their parents were called in and they were all given a notice of suspension from school (apart from potential criminal action for their possession of illegal drugs). However, the students and their parents became upset at the principal, wanting to know why the principal had authorized a broad, random, and more importantly, “warrantless” search of the students’ lockers by local law enforcement. The parents argued that their children’s right to privacy had been violated by an alleged unconstitutional search and seizure.
Q: Did the principal or law enforcement violate the law by sending trained police dogs into the school to sniff for drugs? A: Probably not. Dog sniffing is not especially intrusive and though students maintain their Constitutional rights in school, they are lessened. Searches must simply be reasonable.
Q: Was it lawful for the police to search the lockers where the dogs stopped and barked, indicating they had smelled drugs? A: Yes. Teachers and police officers cannot search a student’s locker or backpack without a strong suspicion that there is contraband inside. But if a trained dog “hits” on the bag or locker, it can usually be searched.
Q: Do Regan and Bailey have anything to worry about, even though they did not touch the money or the baggie, and no drugs were found in their lockers? A: No. It is not against the law to be “merely present” when others commit a crime, as long as you don’t encourage it, help, or ask another person to do something illegal.
Q: Did the five students who were caught with drugs but had not been seenexchanging money and a baggie on school grounds have a higher expectation of privacy than Robyn and Shawn? A: Yes. Police need a good reason to conduct searches. Until the dogs sniffed the lockers, there was no reason to search the other students’ lockers.
Q: Would it make a difference if the students who were seen in the parking lot had been standing on the sidewalk? A: No, they were still near the school and it would be equally reasonable to conclude that they had stashed contraband in their lockers.
Q: Does it matter that the students were seen after school hours? A: No. Again, by conducting the transaction so close to the school, it would be reasonable to suspect that the students stashed contraband in their lockers.
