Examines Fourth Amendment legal issues involved in drug testing of public employees. Discusses several recent court cases involving probable cause and reasonable suspicion to determine appropriate standards for individual situations. Outlines implications for public employers. Blanket drug testing is not permissable, though job applicants have…

Recent Supreme Court decisions are discussed. Included are cases dealing with the powers of police to make arrests and conduct searches without first obtaining warrants, criminal law and procedure, equal rights for women, prison conditions, nuclear power plans, and the tax-exempt status of private schools. (RM)

Reviews the Supreme Court student search policy in relation to a recent decision concerning a Pima County, Arizona, high school student search that revealed cocaine but was found to be an illegal search. Also reviews the lower court decision in "Loudermill v. Cleveland Board of Education," which found that the school had provided its…

In 1988, the Tennessee Legislature passed permissive legislation (TCA 49-940) that allows school officials to test suspected students for using drugs. The law provides that testing is optional, with each local education agency deciding whether or not to adopt the policy. Twelve school systems chose to adopt the legislation as board policy. This…

Suggests that it is necessary to protect the privacy of government procedures that could compromise security, yet there is also a need to revise and fine-tune legislation that expands government authority. Asserts that all major corrections in the delicate balance between public safety and civil rights typically require corrections themselves. (NB)

This publication summarizes and explains education-related court decisions in an effort to supply school people with guidelines in determining how school law applies to specific situations in their school districts. Although there is some emphasis on Oklahoma law, cases cited originated in all parts of the United States. Cases cited concern civil…

The legal status of college students in relationship to the institution they attend is discussed, focusing on the contractual relationship, due process, access to education, First Amendment rights, search and seizure, federal aid regulation, residency requirements for voting, and the doctrine of academic abstention in legal matters. (MSE)

Focusing on current United States Supreme Court decisions affecting the searching of students in school, this report also briefly examines the evolution of the right to education and student freedom of speech. Regarding search and seizure, since 1985 the Court has maintained that school officials are not exempt from the restrictions of the Fourth…

Emphasizing the necessity for open communication and respect for everyone's rights as the best way to prevent problems at school, this paper offers information and advice to both students and parents (in separate sections) on their rights relating to public education. The topics range from discrimination, due process, and disciplinary measures to…