Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton
| Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Argued March 28, 1995 Decided June 21, 1995 |
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| Full case name | Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton et ux., Guardians ad Litem for Acton |
| Citations | 515 U.S. 646 (more)
115 S. Ct. 2386
|
| Argument | Oral argument |
| Prior history | Verdict for petitioners in the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, 796 F. Supp. 1354 (D. Or. 1992); reversed by United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, 23 F.3d 1514 (9th Cir. 1994) |
| Holding | |
| The Fourth Amendment allows random drug testing of high school students involved in athletic programs. | |
| Court membership | |
| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Scalia, joined by Rehnquist, Kennedy, Thomas, Ginsburg, Breyer |
| Concurrence | Ginsburg |
| Dissent | O'Connor, joined by Stevens, Souter |
| Laws applied | |
| Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution | |
Vernonia School District 47J v. Acton, 515 U.S. 646 (1995) was a U.S. Supreme Court decision which upheld the constitutionality of random drug testing regimen implemented by the local public schools in Vernonia, Oregon. Under that regimen, student athletes were required to submit to random drug testing before being allowed to participate in sports. During the season, 10% of all athletes were selected at random for testing. The Supreme Court held that although the tests were searches under the Fourth Amendment, they were reasonable in light of the schools' interest in preventing teenage drug use.
In the mid-1990s, officials in the school district in Vernonia noticed a precipitous rise in drug use among the students in the Vernonia School District. Disciplinary problems arose in frequency and severity. Student athletes were prevalent among Vernonia's students. At the trial, the Vernonia High School football and wrestling coaches noted they had witnessed injuries attributable to student drug use.
In response, the school district offered special classes, speakers, and presentations to the students intended to deter drug use. It brought in a specially trained dog to detect drugs, but the drug problem continued unabated. After inviting comments from the parents of the district's students, the district adopted a drug testing plan.
The protocol of the random drug testing program the district initiated was straightforward. All student athletes would be required to submit to the program as a condition of participating in athletics. All athletes were tested at the beginning of the season, and 10% of the athletes were selected randomly every week to provide a urine sample. The samples were collected in a manner that preserved the students' modesty. If a student's sample tested positive, the student was given the option of either undergoing counseling and submitting to six weekly drug tests or sitting out the remainder of that season as well as the following season.
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