Board of Education v. Earls

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Board of Education v. Earls
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued March 19, 2002 Decided June 27, 2002
Full case name: Board of Education of Independent School District of Pottawatomie County et al. v. Earls et al. Citations: 536 U.S. 822 Prior history: On writ of certiorari to the Court of Appeals of the Tenth Circuit
Holding
Coercive drug testing imposed by school district upon students who participate in extracurricular activities does not violate the Fourth Amendment.
Court membership
Chief Justice: William Rehnquist Associate Justices: John Paul Stevens, Sandra Day O'Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, David Souter, Clarence Thomas, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer
Case opinions
Majority by: Thomas Joined by: Kennedy, Scalia, Rehnquist Concurrence by: Breyer Dissent by: Ginsburg Joined by: Stevens, O'Connor, Souter Dissent by: O'Connor Joined by: Souter
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amend. IV

Board of Education v. Earls 536 U.S. 822 (2002) was a 2002 decision of the Supreme Court of the United States which ruled, 5-4, that mandatory drug testing of students in extracurricular activities was constitutional. It was brought by two parents against the school board of Tecumseh, Oklahoma, alleging that their policy requiring students to consent to random urinalysis testing for drug use violated the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The majority decision, written by Justice Clarence Thomas, with a concurring opinion by Justice Stephen Breyer held that students in extracurricular activities had a diminished expectation of privacy, and that the policy furthered an important interest of the school in preventing drug use among students. This rationale was based on the precedent Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton, which allowed drug testing for athletes.

[edit] References

• Headnote and summary of the decision
• Full text of the decision including concurring and dissenting opinions