Devers v. Southern University
Louisiana Court of Appeal
712 So. 2d 199 (1998)
- Written by Jennifer Flinn, JD
Facts
Patrick Devers (plaintiff) was a student at Southern University (defendant), a public university in Louisiana. Devers lived in a residence hall on campus. Before moving into the residence hall, Devers signed a housing agreement that allowed the university to inspect rooms with law enforcement. According to the university, this inspection policy was necessary to prevent the use of drugs or weapons on campus. During a search of Devers’s room, university officials found 12 bags of marijuana in Devers’s dorm room. Devers was arrested for criminal drug charges and later expelled from the university by the university’s judicial committee. Devers filed a lawsuit against the university, alleging that the search of his room was unconstitutional. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of Devers, ruling that the university’s housing agreement that allowed warrantless searches of dorm rooms was unconstitutional. The university appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Carter, J.)
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