The ACLU of Colorado fired off a letter of complaint to the Boulder Valley School District today accusing administrators of “committing felonies” by violating students’ rights to privacy when they searched students’ cellphone text messages last year.
The letter, signed by ACLU legal director Mark Silverstein, cites an incident last year at Monarch High School in which a student was sent to an administrator’s office for allegedly smoking cigarettes.
“After a search of the student’s pockets and backpack turned up nothing, the administrator searched the student’s cellphone,” according to the letter.
The administrator then “interrogated” the student about text messages that he found to be “incriminating.”
Other students were called into the administrator’s office based on the text messages that were viewed. They were questioned, and their cellphones also were searched, according to the ACLU.
“The educators at Monarch High School need some education themselves about the law and students’ rights,” Silverstein said. “Students have legally protected rights of privacy, and the actions of Monarch administrators are violating those rights.”
The school district released a statement today backing the “actions taken” by school officials.
“Prior to confiscating the students’ cellular phones and transcribing text messages found on them,” school officials contacted the district’s legal counsel and were told “it was indeed legal for them to take the actions,” the district said in a press release.
The district said it takes “very seriously” the civil liberties of its 28,000 students and is willing to sit down with the ACLU to review the matter.
Principals at other schools in Colorado have searched students’ cellphone text messages, including in Douglas and Jefferson counties.
Administrators there said they’ve searched student text messages when they suspect drug abuse or cheating on tests.
Kieran Nicholson: 303-954-1822 or knicholson@denverpost.com
