Case Name: New Jersey v. TLO
Year: Argued 1984 ; Decided 1985
Result: 6-3 in favor of New Jersey
Related Constitutional Issue/ Amendment: 4th Amendment dealing with searches and seizures without a warrant
Civil Rights or Civil Liberties: Civil Liberties
Significance/ Precedent: The Court stopped its requirement that searches only be conducted when there is a reasonable cause but instead on school grounds if there is reasonable presence then a more full search is permitted. The Court used a less strict standard of "reasonableness" to conclude that the search did not violate the Constitution.
Quote from Majority Opinion: ". . . The warrant requirement, in particular, is unsuited to the school environment . . . [T]he legality of a search of a student should depend simply on the reasonableness, under all the circumstances, of the search . . . Such a search will be permissible in its scope when the measures adopted are reasonably related to the objectives of the search and not excessively intrusive in light of the age and sex of the student and the nature of the infraction. "
6-Word Summary: with reasonable evidence schools can search
Year: Argued 1984 ; Decided 1985
Result: 6-3 in favor of New Jersey
Related Constitutional Issue/ Amendment: 4th Amendment dealing with searches and seizures without a warrant
Civil Rights or Civil Liberties: Civil Liberties
Significance/ Precedent: The Court stopped its requirement that searches only be conducted when there is a reasonable cause but instead on school grounds if there is reasonable presence then a more full search is permitted. The Court used a less strict standard of "reasonableness" to conclude that the search did not violate the Constitution.
Quote from Majority Opinion: ". . . The warrant requirement, in particular, is unsuited to the school environment . . . [T]he legality of a search of a student should depend simply on the reasonableness, under all the circumstances, of the search . . . Such a search will be permissible in its scope when the measures adopted are reasonably related to the objectives of the search and not excessively intrusive in light of the age and sex of the student and the nature of the infraction. "
6-Word Summary: with reasonable evidence schools can search