Doe v. Renfrow
United States District Court for the Northern District of Indiana
475 F. Supp. 1012 (1979)
- Written by Mary Katherine Cunningham, JD
Facts
Doe (plaintiff) was a student in an Indiana high school in 1978. School officials in the fall of 1978 recorded 21 instances of students on campus in possession of drugs or alcohol. School officials and local police officers in the canine units conducted searches as part of a policy to eliminate drugs on campus. Under the policy, a canine team visited each class during the first period of the school day. Teachers told students to sit and do their work while a dog handler led a police dog up and down the classroom aisles. When a police dog alerted to a student, the student was instructed to empty his or her pockets or purse. When the police dog continued to alert after 11 students emptied their pockets, then school officials conducted a body search of each student in the nurse’s station. Doe was one of the 11 students searched at the nurse’s station. Doe was questioned about her drug use and then asked to remove her clothing. After a female staffer examined Doe’s clothing and hair, Doe was allowed to dress after no drugs were found in her possession. Doe and a class of plaintiffs challenged the searches by suing school officials including Renfrow (defendant).
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Sharp, J.)
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