Quebec student accused in persecution of drug trafficking
Mid-February, a 15-year-old girl who attended Neufchâtel High School in Quebec City was accused of trafficking drugs. At the time, the school had previously searched the girl multiple times without finding any evidence of drugs on her person. The situation escalated, however, when the girl sent a text message to a friend on Feb. 12, joking about selling him marijuana.
The school, after learning about the message, confiscated her cell phone and searched her locker, where no drugs were found. The administration then proceeded to demand a strip-search of the student in attempts to find the drugs they believed she was trafficking.
The student was taken to a room with the school’s female principal, as well as a female teacher, and was ordered to remove her clothing behind a towel the teacher held up. She was told to hand over her clothing to the principal, who searched through every piece, including her underwear, in an attempt to find evidence of drugs.
The police were not called in or involved at all, and the student was denied the ability to call her mother, even though she asked to do so more than once.
The act of strip-searching a 15-year-old girl has called into question the legislation that the act is based upon, as many have voiced opinions regarding the legality of the search – especially when conducted by teachers and not police.
Quebec’s education minister, Yves Bolduc, originally defended the act, as it is in accordance with the legislation passed in Quebec on the topic of school safety. Based on that legislation, principals are allowed to search students for the safety of others; however, there is no mention of strip search policy in the legislation.
Originally, when the story broke, the education minister sided with the teachers and said that high school strip searches are allowed under “strict” conditions, emphasizing in a statement to the press that the search must be “very respectful” to the student in question. Following public reaction to the incident, however, Bolduc initiated a report from an uninvolved third party, who will look over the details of the case and make an unbiased ruling on whether or not strip searches should be allowed in schools.
There have been two other cases of strip searches in Quebec high schools that the expert will also take into consideration when making their report.
The student’s parents are suing the school board, as they believe that the school misinterpreted the guidelines set out by the government, causing humiliation for their daughter.
The parents’ lawyer, Francois David Bernier, in looking over the legislation the high school used to defend their actions, told the Toronto Star that the administration “misinterpreted the government guidelines.”
“In no case does the document talk about nude searches,” said Bernier. “We blame the school board, because it took the government document and interpreted it erroneously.
Currently, the family is in the process of building their case against the school board. An official report on the act of strip-searching students is expected to be complete in mid-March.