Constitution Day - Celebrating Our Rights and Responsibilities

1. Constitution Day September 17 Constitution Day reminds us of our important rights and responsibilities under law.

2. The Constitution was drafted in1787four years after the Revolutionary War ended

3. 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.

4. The Constitution has been amended27 timesWhat do we call the first10 amendments?

5. Who drafted the Bill of Rights in 1789? 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?

6. 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.

7. Q: Which Amendment to the Constitution provides protection against having your home entered and being arrested without a good reason? A: The Fourth Amendment.

8. Today’s Lesson: United States ConstitutionThe 4th Amendment: Search and Seizure

9. 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."

10. 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?

11. 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

12. Exceptions to the Rule • Can anyone think of a reason why they 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

13. 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

14. 6th Grade Case • It was the morning of the first day of middle school for Parker Patterson. Parker was a little nervous about having to use a locker for the first time. During student orientation, Parker had practiced dialing the combination on the lock several times, and it worked most, but not all of the time. • At breakfast, Parker’s parent was cutting up some strawberries with a little knife for Parker’s lunch. • Parker heard the school bus arrive and was afraid of missing it. In haste, Parker grabbed the sandwich and container of cut-up strawberries for lunch and stuffed them into a backpack. • Unknowingly, Parker put the cutting knife in the backpack, too.

15. While on the bus, some of the 6th graders were comparing what they brought for lunch. Parker opened the backpack and saw the knife. Parker knew that knives are not allowed on the bus or in the school and panicked. Parker told Parker’s best friend, Cory, in a very quiet voice that there was a knife in the backpack, but not to tell anyone or there would be big trouble. When the bus arrived, Parker was able to open the locker, no problem! And Parker put the knife in the locker, hiding it under some folders. Parker intended to take the knife home and put it in the drawer and hoped nothing bad would happen, and that nobody would ever know.

16. After 2nd hour, Parker saw the principal opening Parker’s locker. Parker ran into the bathroom and hid. The principal followed and after catching up with Parker, asked if there was something Parker wanted to tell the principal about. Parker said, “no.” Parker’s parent was called to the school and after arriving, the principal explained that a student reported that, according to Parker, there was a knife in Parker’s backpack. The principal found the knife in the locker, and Parker had failed to admit it. Parker’s parent became upset at the principal, wanting to know why the principal had looked in Parker’s locked-up locker and thereby invaded Parker’s privacy.

17. QUESTIONS FOR THE JUSTICES!

18. Did the principal violate the Constitution by opening Parker’s locked locker? What if the locker had been unlocked, but closed? What if the locker door had been wide open?

19. Q: Did the principal violate the Constitution by opening Parker’s locked locker? A: No. The Fourth Amendment protects people against “unreasonable” searches and seizures. Outside of a school context, police would need to get a warrant. But in school, no warrant is needed. Parker’s knife possession likely violated a school rule and might have posed a danger to other students, so it was reasonable to search for it.

20. Q: What if the locker had been unlocked, but closed? A: Same result. Whether a locker is locked or not, a teacher or principal may notsearch it without a good reason. But here, the principal had a good reason to search Parker’s locker, so it did not matter whether it was locked or not.

21. Q: What if the locker door had been wide open? A: If the locker was open, then the principal would not need a good reason to merely glance inside. This is called the “plain sight” rule. But the principal would still need a good reason to open up the backpack, even if the locker was left wide open.

22. Q: What if Parker had left the backpack on the bus on purpose so it would not be in the school. Would the principal have had the right to search the backpack on the bus? Why or why not? A: The result would be the same. The bus is part of the school system and any school rules as well as local laws would apply. A search of Parker’s backpack on the bus would still be permissible.

23. So… Given what you now know about how the Fourth Amendment gets applied to students in public schools, what should Parker have done?

24. Thank you for your attention!