Does your school have metal detectors?
 

A post recently made me think about it, and no highschool that I have ever been to has had metal detectors... does yours?

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

My high school didn't. But Jones College Prep which is the school next to Columbia in Chicago (in the safest neighborhood in Chicago) has them. They also have the x-ray machines that they have for your carry ons at the airport.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

My high school didn't and my college doesn't and I wouldn't mind if either one did.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Ours does not, I've heard of at least one in our area implementing them temporarily though.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Nope, but the high school where the UIL Competition was (for marching band) had metal detectors and fences so that no one could come in or out and on top of that the windows as well had bars on them, or atleast it looked like it at night when we were warming up.

Pavan.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

If you do, what area of the country do you live in?
And have there been any acts at your school that proved the need for them?

The most restrictive rule our school has
(other than the no weapons Zero tolerance) is that the purses are only allowed to be 5"x8", and that isn't really enforced.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Midwest: Sherrard doesn't have metal detectors but a single door that you must go through after the doors lock 1 minute after the bell rings for classes to start. In that hallway there is a button you have to push and then a camera you have to look into and state and spell your name, as well as give the reason you are there. THEN you have to be buzzed through and escorted to the main office, across the hall. I've only gone through once, so there might be a tiny bit of exagerration. Moline does not have any sort of security. There's also 2,500 students attending MHS. Compared to the ~500 at SHS. It's all screwy.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

I was looking into the legalities of this after all students were required to have their bags searched before coming into school one morning (due to a bomb threat).

The conclusion that I found was that it is not legal for all people to be searched under one warrant, as it is more or less impossible to have probable cause for hundreds of students. The only time it would be legal is in a specific case, eg: you have probable cause for one student.

I'll find my sources later, I believe it was an ACLU affiliate.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

I seem to have heard that if you were on government property, ie a school, search and seizure was legal without a warrant. Could be wrong, though.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Only with probable cause, or in an area where it is clearly indicated that acceptance of search is a condition of entry. (They do this at international borders where you can simply turn around and not cross the border if you do not consent to a search, but can't do it for an entire school, because you can't be compelled to enter such an area.)

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Nope, but I wouldnt be caught dead with a "Harmful device" on me.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Neither Irmo High School (my alma mater) nor Columbia High School (home of 1618) has metal detectors. Both are (naturally) in the middle part of South Carolina. Irmo's tends to be a little more affluent than Columbia.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

It doesn't take much for a teacher/adminstrator to claim probable cause.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Neither one of the schools that I attened had metal dectors. One of them is in the middle of the city of Wilmington and the other is located outside of the city in a middle class area. The school in Wilmington has had 3 shootings occur within blocks of the school That I have responded to but non of them were related with the school I was told that they are now in the process of buying dectors for the main entrences of the school. I would love to see more schools and building have metal dectors, It would make lines longer but make people feel much safer, I really hate having to wear a bullet proff vest to work every day and being worried about entering a building, store or school for an assult and have to worry about being shot.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

School doesn't (Southern Wesleyan University), but work does - along with X-Ray machines and explosive detectors - nuclear power plant...

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

My HS was campus style with the rooms facing outside, there were a million ways to get on campus, so, no, no metal detectors or such.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Same here. Campus style, at least...oh... 20 or so doors into the school I can think of, at least 8 of which are centrally located enough that you could easily get to almost any of the classrooms quickly and easily.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

In Virginia, unless your parents provide an 'adaquate' alternative to school, you are required to attend from 5 years old until your are 18 or graduate.

Tristan, there are metal detectors at the Fairfax County Courts complex that you have to pass through to attend any court, including traffic court. Some tickets compel you to attend court

Anyway, I get to play with metal dectors in my chem lab. :D

Wetzel

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

We have them, usually they stay tucked to the side in our main lobby, but, on occasion, they take them out and set them up. When they are in use the policy is that the every fifth person through a door has to go through. I'm pretty sure they look through the bags too, but I'm not certain. (The last time they used them was a while ago and I haven't had to go through one)

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

If I was ever searched by teachers/administrators on "probable cause" based on false grounds I'd seriously consider legal action.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

my high school has over 4,000 students at it. Last year, there were a couple incidents in which freshmen got into fights, and twice people got stabbed, but that was an odd year. Even after they considered it, there still aren't any metal detectors. (there are around 20-30 entrances, so it'd be impractical)

Really the only safety measure they have is the rule that you're not allowed to wear winter coats indoors, and they don't enforce that too well...

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

You're required to attend some form of school, but not necessarily that particular school. That would offer you an alternative to the search, if you desired it.
In my experience, whether entering an Ontario provincial court or the Supreme Court of Canada, there were no required searches, except on supposedly high-risk cases. You merely had to announce your presence to the guard, and he would permit you to enter at an opportune time. In those few high-risk cases, it was the visitors (who were there at their own option) that were being searched, just prior to their entry into some of the courtrooms; the prisoner was already in custody (subject to search anyway), and it didn't appear that the judge or the lawyers were searched. So I suppose that my Canadian experience is interfering with my impression of the state of American procedure.

There might be a technicality where an automatic metal detector isn't considered a search, and that probable cause exists when it goes off, so that the officer can manually search you. But that's not an interpretation with which I'm familiar.

Unless they're somehow not conducting a search, "every fifth person" is not probable cause. If you were to refuse, would you just be denied entry, or would they attempt to search you forcibly?

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Nope. Also, on the question of search and seizure at school, one thing stands: you're a minor on state property. AKA you have effectively no rights. So the school can legally search anything you're carrying. However, they need a warrant to search your car if it's parked, unless they have probably cause.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

The bit about searching the car is correct, though leaving an offending object in plain view generally satisfies probable cause.

But as for the "minor on state property" doctrine, that's not how U.S. law works. I looked briefly into the details, and it looks like there is a narrow exemption of the probable cause rules; instead, the "reasonableness" of the search is at issue. According to the Supreme Court decision in New Jersey v. T. L. O.*, while the school can act in loco parentis (meaning that the parents delegate their responsibility and authority to the school), the school is also a representative of the state, and must therefore obey the Fourth Amendment. In the majority opinion, it was written:

1. The Fourth Amendment's prohibition on unreasonable searches and seizures applies to searches conducted by public school officials and is not limited to searches carried out by law enforcement officers. Nor are school officials exempt from the Amendment's dictates by virtue of the special nature of their authority over schoolchildren. In carrying out searches and other functions pursuant to disciplinary policies mandated by state statutes, school officials act as representatives of the State, not merely as surrogates for the parents of students, and they cannot claim the parents' immunity from the Fourth Amendment's strictures. Pp. 333-337. [469 U.S. 325, 326]

2. Schoolchildren have legitimate expectations of privacy. They may find it necessary to carry with them a variety of legitimate, non-contraband items, and there is no reason to conclude that they have necessarily waived all rights to privacy in such items by bringing them onto school grounds. But striking the balance between schoolchildren's legitimate expectations of privacy and the school's equally legitimate need to maintain an environment in which learning can take place requires some easing of the restrictions to which searches by public authorities are ordinarily subject. Thus, school officials need not obtain a warrant before searching a student who is under their authority. Moreover, school officials need not be held subject to the requirement that searches be based on probable cause to believe that the subject of the search has violated or is violating the law. Rather, the legality of a search of a student should depend simply on the reasonableness, under all the circumstances, of the search. Determining the reasonableness of any search involves a determination of whether the search was justified at its inception and whether, as conducted, it was reasonably related in scope to the circumstances that justified the interference in the first place. Under ordinary circumstances the search of a student by a school official will be justified at its inception where there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that the search will turn up evidence that the student has violated or is violating either the law or the rules of the school. And such a search will be permissible in its scope when the measures adopted are reasonably related to the objectives of the search and not excessively intrusive in light of the student's age and sex and the nature of the infraction. Pp. 337-343.

Also, it's important to also note that there was a dissenting opinion (voiced by three of nine justices) that any such search (without probable cause) was a violation of the Constitution. (If ever re-examined by the Court, the points raised in dissent will also be considered.)

So I reiterate: by the standard in T.L.O. (i.e. existing case law), you can't single out every fifth person for search, because there is no reasonable way to believe that searching them will uncover a violation. The law in this case is a little less restrictive than the usual standard of probable cause, but it still requires a good reason for the search to take place. And this applies only when the school is acting in loco parentis—in general, the state must still satisfy probable cause before searching you. (Actually, this brings up an interesting point—what happens when a security guard or a police officer searches you as part of a reasonable in-school search? Can the school's parental role be further transferred to the officer/guard? Sounds like a job for SCOTUS.)

Amazingly enough, you still have rights, even as a minor attending school.

*T.L.O. is an anonymous defendant.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

My school does not have them, nor do any other schools in the immediate area. Personally, I would not mind more school security. All we have is a Sherrif who walks around on occassion and a mean lady in a golf cart who gives you parking violations. Funny how NEITHER were present 2 years ago when 6 kids (on different days) had their cars broken into by construction workers across the street.... However, I do wish we had the locking door jazz and metal detectors to give a little bit more (false) sense of security...

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Jospeh C. Wilson Magnet high school has metal detectors (at both buildings). I think most of the Rochester City school district high schools have them.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

A lot of you are saying that your school has a ton of entrances, so it would be near impossible to have that many metal detectors. I applaud all of your schools for meeting fire safety codes, however there is another solution (it's not perfect) to having a security checkpoint at your school. Lock the doors.

From the outside of course, this would cause all of your students and faculty to use the same doors. It's not perfect (like people going in, and then opening the doors for others to sneak in) but hey, they do it at my school, and they have at least 20-40 entrances, but only 2 or so are open for people to use in the morning (drives the general populous insane). My school doesn't have metal detectors, but we have an armed township police officer, a "student resource officer" assigned to our school.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Every 5th person is a plausible search reason. Living close to an international border (canada) they often pull over every nth car for a random search.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

It's no secret. Although I live in the nice suburb of South Meriden, the high school which I attend in Meriden, CT would definitely qualify as an inner-city school. Even though crime levels may be elevated in the downtown and inner-city areas of my town, I've never felt unsafe at my high school. Ever. I don't have a lock on my locker, and nothing has ever been stolen from me. We don't have metal detectors. We don't have random searches. We also don't have huge problems with bullying or fights (I have never seen a single student - ever - being bullied in the past four years).

We have some cliques as does any high school, but they never cause problems. I get along just fine with practically everyone at my school, whether they're jocks, band geeks, average kids, or just robotics nerds. lol But seriously, I'm not a football player, but I could sit down at the football player's unofficial lunch table and they'd be like, "Hey, it's Art Dutra! How's it going, man?".

During the day time, most of the doors in the school are locked except for the main entrance, but it's no secret that seniors who have driver's licenses often skip study hall, sneak out a back or side entrance, go to a local McDonald's or the similar venue, and then come back to school. Sometimes (although it's against the 'rules') the teachers ask the students to pick up food for them on their way out and they'll 'cover' for them while they're gone. ;) This is actually quite common during holiday seasons when students will run out to the local supermarket a block away to pick up stuff to have parties in school.

On the whole, everyone at my high school is pretty chill about everything. No one makes problems, no problems arise. It's all good. :)

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Pontiac Central High School - Team 47 Chief Delphi.

Yes our school uses airport style detectors for all students and guests to walk though as well as every backpack or package is scanned by a conveyor style scanner like at the airport. Additionally a wand is used for detailed inspection by security staff.

We have a full time police officer within the school.

All students must remove coats and pass them through the package scanner upon entry.

All students are required to have a school picture ID for entrance. Students without ID are sold a new one for $5 or sent home.

No cell phones, MP3Players or electronics are allowed in the school. If found they are taken and returned only to a parent after a 1 week waiting period.

All students are required to wear a collared shirt.
All shirts MUST be tucked in at all times.
Pants must have a belt and cannot "Sag".
No hats or head covering are allowed.
Violation of dress code is a suspension.

Hoodies are not allowed to be worn in the halls or classrooms and must be put into lockers.

Also, full video monitoring in commons, hallways and outside.

Rules apply to all male and female students.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

This doesn't really work for the campus style. By many entrances, Our school has one door for each classroom. The only area that might be feasible to make secure would be the upstairs wing that was added a couple of years ago, which has only two doors.

Plus, we're decently nice people, so we don't have a need for metal detectors (and hoefully we never will).

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

No Metal detectors. Although, my school reserves the right to search: Car, Locker, Jackets, Bags, Computer, Phone, Without our being present for the search. But since we are private, they said that parents must sign a form saying yes to this, or we cant attend. Never has it ever had to be used on anyone though. We only have 600 kids k-12, so everyone knows everyone.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

Pontiac northern is the same as pontiac central.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

we just recently had cameras installed. no detectors, but i wouldnt be surprised if schools in the area started using them next year due to the shooting at Dawson College.

Re: Does your school have metal detectors?
 

I second that considering my school (Pontiac Northern) is the across town arrival of Pontiac Central.