Dear Editor:

It has been recently been brought to my attention by a close friend that there is something going on here at Norwich University that is of grave importance.

There seems to be a situation that arises all too often by too many students living on campus. I have been told by reliable sources that floor RA's have been violating the rights of students. The rights that have been trampled on are the rights of illegal search and seizure.

I was informed that recently an RA on duty one evening entered into the room of a student without knocking on the door, or even asking to be let into the room.

The RA has made two claims. The first is that the student was playing music too loud past quiet hours, and that she had the right to enter because the music needed to be lowered immediately.

The second claim is that a person left the room, and as that person left the room, the door was left open exposing people within the room consuming alcohol.

There are several problems with this. The first is that unless this RA is able to see through a human being, she would be unable to see what activity was taking place within the room. The other problem with this is that everyone who lives within a dorm knows that when a door is opened, gravity causes the door to shut. Now, since this RA said the door was left open, and what was occurring inside the room was exposed, she MUST be lying, because the doors in the dorms, do not stay open, they slam shut.

In conclusion, if a situation like this occurs, a formal investigation MUST occur. Yes, the student was wrong for performing an illegal activity within their room, but the RA performed a clear violation of rights by entering the room without probable cause. I don't believe that a police officer in any state is permitted to enter into the home of any person without a warrant from a court.

Yes, this school is a private University, and subject to slightly different rules, but what type of institution is allowed to alter the inalienable rights of every individual that are recognized by the Supreme Court of the United States?

Some type of regulation of RA activity must be devised to prevent any future violations or disgrace could be brought about to the University if some RA violates the rights of a person who is willing to go the distance to defend their rights as an American citizen.

James P Strail

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