THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 17, 1997 TAG: 9701170126
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MARC DAVIS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 64 lines
Three high school students have added their names and stories to a lawsuit filed last month by a Maury High School student, accusing Norfolk public schools of conducting illegal student searches.
A 14-year-old Granby student, Graham Condon, claims he asked that his mother be present during a search using drug-sniffing dogs in his science class in October, but was told he would have to go downtown to a police station. His mother later withdrew him from the school.
Another Granby student, James A. DesRoches II, 15, claims he was forced to take off his shoes so school officials could examine his feet during a search in his geometry class in May.
A 15-year-old Maury student, James Smyth, claims he was searched on a bus after it arrived at school one day in November. He says all students were ordered to get out, empty their pockets, lay their belongings on the ground and submit to a search.
None of the students was found with contraband, the lawsuit says.
All four plaintiffs say that Norfolk's policy of random student searches violates the state constitution. The lawsuit says that searches often start with use of a metal detector wand, but students are routinely searched even when the metal detector is not activated.
They seek a court order to end the practice, plus unspecified monetary damages.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia mailed the amended lawsuit Thursday to Norfolk Circuit Court, said staff attorney Mary C. Bauer in Richmond.
The original lawsuit was filed Dec. 2 by Matthew Smith, 16, a junior at Maury High School, against the Norfolk School Board and Maury Principal Michael Spencer.
A preliminary injunction hearing was set for Dec. 20, but was never held so the ACLU could amend its lawsuit.
The city attorney's office has filed several objections to the original lawsuit.
First, Spencer and the board claim they are immune from lawsuits for their official actions. Second, they claim that Smith did not show any ``irreparable injury'' caused by past searches or the search policy.
The school system says that such searches are necessary to maintain safety in the schools, to keep out drugs and weapons.
``Unfortunately, I think it's a necessary evil for schools to have in this day and time . . . It's no more (intrusive) than getting in an airplane or going to a large sporting event,'' Spencer said last month.
DesRoches' father said Thursday that he does not want money from the lawsuit, only to change the schools' search policy.
``It's almost as if they assume all the kids are animals and they treat them as such,'' said the father, James A. DesRoches. ``I do think the law should be respected and upheld. I do think that if you teach the constitution, you should uphold it.''
Deputy City Attorney Harold P. Juren said Thursday he has not seen the amended lawsuit and could not comment on its specifics. ``I just think this is a publicity stunt,'' he said.
The amended lawsuit names 13 new defendants, including Superintendent Roy D. Nichols Jr., Granby Principal Michael Caprio, seven security officers at Granby and Maury, and other school officials.
A preliminary injunction hearing may be held later this month, but no date has been set, Bauer said.
KEYWORDS: LAWSUIT