University of Virginia Library

ODU Student Seeks Redress
In Constitutional Rights Case

An alleged violation of constitutional
rights has prompted an Old Dominion
University student to seek legal redress
with the Norfolk chapter of the American
Civil Liberties Union defending him.

Gibbs Arthur, a student representative
in the Old Dominion Senate, recently
acted on complaints received from
dormitory students concerning their civil
rights.

According to the "Mace and Crown",
the student newspaper of ODU, Mr.
Arthur presented his assertions last week
to the local ACLU chapter who decided
to investigate the allegations and,
consequently, referred the case to their
Due Process Committee.

The problems arose over the right of
the dormitory management to search
rooms without a warrant. According to
Mr. Arthur, University action based on
these searches is "invalid since students
are guaranteed their constitutional rights
by the University."

He continued saying, "University
action based on a search without a
warrant is contrary to those rights assured
students of the University by the student
bill of rights. Mr. Arthur did concede that
the privilege of searching the room
without a warrant may be legally
delegated to the management in the
residential leases.

The legal loophole that Mr. Arthur
cites is that the ODU dormitories are
privately owned. Consequently, it is
important that the constitutionality and
the legality of the dormitory leases be
determined.

Another problem that Mr. Arthur
cited in the case is that even if the
students are found guilty they will run
into the problem of "triple jeopardy"
because all ODU students are subject to
three codes of discipline: civil,
dormitory, and University.

In support of his claim, Mr. Arthur
cited section 5b of the "Students' Rights
and Freedoms."

The document states "When a student
incurs a penalty prescribed by civil
authority, University authority shall not
be exercised merely to compound the
penalty. The student who incidentally
violates institutional regulations in the
course of off-campus activity shall be
subject to no greater penalty than would
normally be imposed."

Warren Matthews, Dean of Student
Affairs, said, "According to our best legal
advice, we are doing nothing illegal at this
time." Mr. Matthews sided with the
University saying that the University does
not believe that it has done anything or is
doing anything to violate students' rights.
He did, however, commend Mr. Arthur
for "acting responsibly" in pursuing the
case.

Mr. Matthews also noted that one
must consider parents, students, and the
public of the commonwealth when
formulating principles of conduct.