ACLU Challenges Florida’s Mandatory Drug Tests For Housing

[mikita's helmet]

Marchwinski v. Howard,113 F.Supp.2d 1134 (E.D.Mich. 2000), is a case from the The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan enjoining state officials from administering suspicionless drug testing on Michigan Welfare recipients. In 2003, the United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit (one step below the US Supreme Court) upheld the injunction.



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Michigan welfare recipients challenged constitutionality of new law authorizing suspicionless drug testing. On plaintiffs' motion for preliminary injunction, the District Court, Roberts, J., held that law was unconstitutional where not designed to address jeopardy to public safety.



http://www.aclufl.or...Marchwinski.pdf



"the State in this case has not demonstrated a special need that justifies departure from the ordinary Fourth Amendment requirement of individualized suspicion. The State has not shown that public safety is genuinely placed in jeopardy in the absence of drug testing of all FIP applicants and of random, suspicionless testing of FIP recipients."

 

[mikita's helmet]

Not sure if this was touched on, but I had heard about this a few weeks ago, and it was stated that 98% of the people tested pass. Whether it is because the individual is indeed clean or they are using a masking agent is irrelevant. The State has actually be losing more money then saving with this program.



I wish I had the article I read. I didn't save it.

Footnote 4 of Lebron's complaint, see p.8 of the link below, points out that only 2% of the 1,000 applicants failed the drug test. The footnote also argues that 8.13% of the general population are illicit drug users.



http://www.scribd.co...en-amp-Families

 

[winos5]

So it would appear there is legal precedent finding this type of requirement unconstitutional in Michigan. Good enough for me.

 

[LordKOTL]

My mistake then. I just skimmed over the cases, as I said. Most of what I ran into was based on criminal, and not suspicionless proceedings. I still think, though that this case has only state-level and not federal-level precedent and it can go either way if the case mmakes it to the supreme court. I kinda hope it does if for nothing else just to settle the issue for a few years.



And Wino, I may not have stayed at a holiday inn, but I'm about as good of a therapist as a former drill instructor.



Ya Jackwagon!

 

[mikita's helmet]

I still think, though that this case has only state-level and not federal-level precedent and it can go either way if the case makes it to the supreme court. I kinda hope it does if for nothing else just to settle the issue for a few years.

Right now this case is in Feredal District Court in Florida. I'm sure the case will be appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals by the side that loses. If the 11th Circuit (Florida, Georgia, Alabama) rules that the state of Florida's statute is unconstitutional, as the Sixth Circuit (Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee) did, then there won't be a conflict between the Circuits and the Supreme Court probably won't hear it. However if the Sixth Circuit rules that the Flordia drug testing statue is not an unreasonable search, it will create a conflict between the Circuits and the Supreme Court may hear it to settle the issue. Usually, but not always, the Supreme Court waits untill 3 or 4 Circuits have ruled on an issue before deciding it, (if the Circuits reach different/conflicting holdings).

 

[winos5]

My mistake then. I just skimmed over the cases, as I said. Most of what I ran into was based on criminal, and not suspicionless proceedings. I still think, though that this case has only state-level and not federal-level precedent and it can go either way if the case mmakes it to the supreme court. I kinda hope it does if for nothing else just to settle the issue for a few years.



And Wino, I may not have stayed at a holiday inn, but I'm about as good of a therapist as a former drill instructor.



Ya Jackwagon!

Best kind. Tissue?

 

[LordKOTL]

Right now this case is in Feredal District Court in Florida. I'm sure the case will be appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals by the side that loses. If the 11th Circuit (Florida, Georgia, Alabama) rules that the state of Florida's statute is unconstitutional, as the Sixth Circuit (Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee) did, then there won't be a conflict between the Circuits and the Supreme Court probably won't hear it. However if the Sixth Circuit rules that the Flordia drug testing statue is not an unreasonable search, it will create a conflict between the Circuits and the Supreme Court may hear it to settle the issue. Usually, but not always, the Supreme Court waits untill 3 or 4 Circuits have ruled on an issue before deciding it, (if the Circuits reach different/conflicting holdings).

Yep...But the reason I hope it gets that far is to pretty much put the issue to bed for about 20 years. If it only gets as far as a circiut court and it upheld, then as soon as the same issue happens in another area that is politically opposite of the SE I'm sure that Circuit court may find it the opposite, and drag this issue on for years as another hot-button point the politicians can snow the voting public with.