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My name is Hoszel West III and I have been working in Housing & Residential Programs at Angelo State University for five years. Four of those years I held the position of Resident Assistant and currently work as the Graduate Hall Director. I hope to continue to work in Housing & Residential Programs to be able to provide a safe and friendly environment for students; a "home away from home" for those living on campus. As a Graduate Hall Director, I have the opportunity to engage with students on campus, as well as assist in advising Resident Assistants, making sure building operations are running smoothly and residents (students) are protected. In my position, I also assist the Senior Area Coordinator with programming within residence halls.

This topic of search and seizure in residence halls is targeted at those serving as Director of Housing & Residential Programs at their respective institutions, as well as Resident Assistants and any other group serving in housing. Search and seizure in residence halls involves interpreting the Fourth Amendment rights of students living on campus. Applying the Fourth Amendment "mandates to postsecondary institutions has not always been clear" (Kaplin & Barbara, 2014, p. 456). As institutions seek to create a safe and proper educational environment, some approaches to achieve this have been deemed unconstitutional and a violation of privacy.

I chose this topic because as an employee that works for housing, my job is to ensure the safety of students living on campus. Having worked as a Resident Assistant, I have had to check on students and the condition of their rooms. While doing so, I have had instances in which a student possessed items that were a violation of their housing contract and illegal. In those situations, there was uncertainty on how to proceed without violating a student's privacy.

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I had an interview with the Senior Area Coordinator of Angelo State, Aubrey Tarantine. In our interview, we discussed the importance of understanding and recognizing students' right to privacy within the residence halls, as well as the difference in search and seizure processes between public and private institutions. Ms. Tarantine mentioned that public institutions typically are more structured in approach, while private institutions can be more "loose." With that, the level of importance of search and seizure in housing programs varies depending on if the institution is private or public.

For instance, Ms. Tarantine mentioned when she dealt with a drug incident while working for Austin College, she was responsible for the actual search and seizure process and turning in those items to police. As Senior Area Coordinator at Angelo State, Ms. Tarantine takes a more passive role and the University Police Department handles the search and seizure. In short, search and seizure does not impact the work of housing programs as much in public institutions as it does in private institutions. However, Ms. Tarantine suggested that a good practice for search and seizure in public institutions is to understand an administrator's role of enforcing policy, not law. With public institutions, when an incident occurs that involves a violation of the law, as a member of housing programs, it is our responsibility to notify University Police and allow them to handle the search and seizure process.

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Education Law Association (n.d.). Commonwealth v. Carr: Warrantless searches of dorm rooms. https://www.educationlaw.org/featured-caselaw/6513-commonwealth-v-carr

This resource is informative to my topic because it discusses an important court case that interprets the Fourth Amendment rights of students and their privacy inside university owned residence halls. This resource breaks down the court case and then gives three different perspectives of the case: an administrator's perspective, an attorney's perspective and a professor's perspective. Having multiple perspectives, you can get an understanding of what several professionals focus on/look at when analyzing a court's decision on search and seizure in residence halls.

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Lubiner, Schmidt, & Palumbo, LLC. (2017, February 13). Warrantless drug searches  on college campuses. New Jersey Lawyer News. https://www.newjerseylawyernews.com/warantless-drug-searches-college-campuses/
Link:
https://www.newjerseylawyernews.com/warantless-drug-searches-college-campuses/

*Courts have been been ruling that attending a university and living in a school-owned building as a voluntary waiver to follow university policies and laws, a primary way universities may bypass a student's Fourth Amendment right.
*A student's right to privacy is a grey area regarding college campuses as each university has varying rules and regulations.
*Courts have been ruling in favor of universities of conducting warrantless searches if they are "reasonable," depending on the circumstances.
*Universities have the responsibility of keeping its students safe from potential dangers. Rooms may need to be inspected for safety reasons, also bypassing a student's Fourth Amendment right.

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Fossey, R. (2018). Students at public universities have a constitutional right to privacy in their dormitory rooms. Journal of College and University Student Housing, 44(3), 62-79.
Link:
http://eds.b.ebscohost.com.easydb.angelo.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=7&sid=26aca097-6541-40a7-a25f-4061627648e3%40pdc-v-sessmgr06

*University housing policies and/or student contracts have been important factors with court decisions regarding searches in residence halls.
*Officials of the university can conduct warrantless searches of dormitory rooms if university policy/contracts give the university the right to do so and if the search is pursuant to the university's responsibility of maintaining a safe educational environment.
*A university's housing policy should avoid the use of broad language because it does not justify dormitory searches by college officials acting with law enforcement.
*It is important to have a clear distinction in the motive of a search by college officials: if the search is conducted for health and safety reasons or if its in aid with a criminal investigation.

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Reference:
U.S. Const. amend. IV
Source of Law: Constitutional Law
Link:
https://constitutionus.com/
Summary:
*The Fourth Amendment protects citizens from unreasonable searches and seizures.
*The Fourth Amendment does not protect citizens from all searches and seizures, only those seen as unreasonable/unconstitutional under the law.
*Warrantless search and seizure on properties is not illegal if the items being searched/seized are in "plain view."
*To obtain a warrant, law enforcement must demonstrate probable cause that a search/seizure is justified.
*Other exceptions to requiring a warrant include consensual searches and certain brief investigatory stops.

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Reference:
Piazzola v. Watkins, 442 F. 2d 284 (1971).
Source of Law: Judicial Law
Link:
https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=2499352637516673313&q=piazzola+v.+watkins&hl=en&as_sdt=6,44&as_vis=1
Summary:
*Established that students who occupy a college room enjoys the protection of the Fourth Amendment.
*Administrators cannot assert their generalized responsibility of student health and safety or argue the institution's landlord status to avoid the Fourth Amendment.
* An institution's landlord status alone does not give it authority to consent to a search by police/law enforcement.
*Institutions cannot require students to waive their Fourth Amendment rights as a condition while living in a college residence hall.
*A housing contract that allows university officials entry into residence hall rooms does not give consent for police to enter.

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Reference:
Tex. Penal Code § 18.01(2005).
Source of Law: Statutory Law
Link:
https://law.justia.com/codes/texas/2005/cr/001.00.000018.00.html
Summary:
*A search warrant cannot be issued unless there are sufficient facts to establish probable cause (a specific offense has been committed, the specifically described evidence/items that are being searched/seized constitute evidence of said offense/crime).
*Only specifically described property/items mentioned in the search warrant may be seized.
*A warrant can only be issued by: a judge of a municipal court of record who is a licensed attorney by the state, a judge of a county court who is a licensed attorney by the state, or a judge of a statutory county court, district court, the court of criminal appeals, or the supreme court.

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Reference:
Devers v. Southern University, 712 So. 2d 199 (La. Ct. App. 1998).
Source of Law: Judicial Law
Link:
https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=5651398279583170935&hl=en&as_sdt=6,44
Summary:
*Court determines that there are many ways to promote the safety interests of students, faculty and staff without conducting warrantless police searches.
*The wording of school policy is important. Southern University's regulation did not specify the purpose of its inspections, rather it allowed entry into dorm rooms with law enforcement without a purpose. The lack of specifics resulted in the authorization being ruled prima facie unconstitutional.
*Court decision further instills that the motivation behind the search and seizure of a dorm room must be clearly stated to serve the university's interest in protecting property of the university and maintain a safe and orderly educational environment.

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Reference:
Angelo State University Housing Handbook § 1(P).
Link:
https://www.angelo.edu/dept/residential_programs/housing-handbook.php#part1
Summary:
In Angelo State's Housing Handbook, privacy is respected by the University and no room can be entered without knocking except for emergencies. Authorized university personnel can enter a student's room and conduct a search to determine compliance of university regulation and policy or federal, state, and local law were there is reasonable cause.

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Reference:
The American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. (n.d.). Ethics and practice. https://www.aacrao.org/who-we-are/mission-vision-values/ethics-practice
Link:
https://www.aacrao.org/who-we-are/mission-vision-values/ethics-practice
Summary:
One of the ethic codes by AACRAO is to protect the legitimate privacy interests of all individuals and maintain appropriate confidentiality of institutional and student education records. When it comes to properly conducting search and seizure in residence halls, as college professionals, we must acknowledge and protect students' right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment.

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Reference:
University of Montana. (n.d.). Know your rights card. http://www.umt.edu/self-study2010/std3/Std3Exhibits/RE3-08/KnowYourRightsCard.pdf
Summary:
The University of Montana offers a "Know Your Rights" card that gives an overview of the rights college students have, including how the Fourth Amendment is interpreted. This card gives professionals a general idea of how to conduct themselves as well as break down students' rights to make it easier to understand.

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*Avoid using broad/vague language in housing policy as it can cause confusion in students.
*The intent of a search by university officials must be clearly stated, serving as way to ensure student safety rather than a criminal investigation.
*Institutions must understand their role of enforcing policy, NOT law.
*Inform students of their Fourth Amendment rights at the beginning of the year and prior to a possible search that involves law enforcement.
*Incorporate more aggressive and proactive procedures to protect students and staff.
*Discuss the proper procedure of conducting health and safety checks with student employers (Resident Assistants), decreasing the chance of legal liability.