Vernonia School District v. Acton (47J)

James Acton, a seventh grade student, expressed his desire to play football for a Vernonia school in the fall of 1991. He and his parents refused to sign the required consent form, however, believing that submission to random drug testing constituted an unreasonable invasion of Acton's privacy as guaranteed in the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments. The school district therefore forbade Acton from participating in interscholastic athletics, and Acton and his parents filed for an injunction against the school district in the district court. The district court heard the case but dismissed the Acton's claims, and the matter proceeded to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The court of appeals reversed the ruling of the district court, finding that the Vernonia School District's policy violated both the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments, as well as provisions of the Oregon State Constitution. The school district then appealed the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, which heard arguments on 28 March 1995.