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BELLEVUE, Wash. — Oct. 16, 2025 — The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) has filed a new lawsuit in New Hampshire challenging the unconstitutional search of an 18-year-old high school senior’s vehicle, based solely on the knowledge that he is a legal gun owner.
The case, Harrington v. Crawford, stems from the search of Hillsboro-Deering High School student Jack Harrington’s vehicle while it was parked on school grounds. Harrington lawfully owns a handgun and sometimes kept his firearm in his truck – in full compliance with all federal and state laws – but always removed the gun from his vehicle before going to school.
When school authorities became aware of Harrington’s gun ownership, he was subjected to aggressive interrogation by district employees which culminated in his vehicle being searched without consent. The school had no reason to believe Harrington brought his firearm to school, and no firearm was found during the invasive and unconstitutional search.
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“Being public about exercising your private rights cannot be grounds for being harassed and searched on campus,” said SAF Director of Legal Operations Bill Sack. “The apparent position of the school district here is ‘choose to exercise one right, give away another.’ That’s just not how it works. If simply being a gun owner is legal justification to be harassed and searched by authorities, what would stop them from submitting gun owners like Jack to searches every day? And what’s their proposed solution to avoid that abuse, that he sells his privately owned firearm?”
As noted in the complaint, “…after the Interrogation in which Jack repeatedly refused to consent to a search and after Jack’s parents were contacted by phone and similarly refused to consent to a search, Defendants searched the Subject Vehicle anyway, finding no firearm.”
“This is the type of fearmongering response we’d expect elsewhere around the country, but not in a state that allows its adult residents to legally own and possess firearms,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “This case is about as cut and dry as it gets when it comes to infringing on the rights of a citizen, and we look forward to vindicating Jack’s rights in court.”
For more information visit SAF.org.
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A automobile is privately owned property while a school locker is owned by the school system. The school can search a student’s locker as the school owns that item I.e. the locker and the school building. The school has no right to search a privately owned auto. Sue the school.
Most school districts require students to apply for decals for any vehicle to be parked on school property on a regular basis. The fine print will spell out any rights and responsibilities including granting permission for searches for drugs, guns, hazardous materials but most likely they just must have a valid license plate and inspection/tax sticker. Gun rights don’t invalidate property rights even if the property is owned by the public.
Most School Boards reserve the right to search vehicles on school property. While I do agree that it is an illegal search just know some schools do have that posted as their rules. The same way they can search a students locker.
Is 4A 2A x 2 ?
This was absolutely a violation of the student’s 4A Rights. Police are not allowed to search a vehicle without probable cause, and even then, police can only search within the “wingspan” of the driver without a search warrant.
School officials did not have any of this and still entered his vehicle and searched it.
I would push for criminal charges against those who searched the vehicle for UEMV (Unauthorized Entry into a Motor Vehicle).
See the gun rack in my F100? See the Remington 760 pump 30-06 in the rack? See the Bear Kodiak Magnum recurve unstrung in the rack?. It’s 1974 and it’s parked on school grounds. No freaking out. No SWAT team showing up. That’s the country I miss and want to live in.
the constitution and laws don’t apply to democrats……kinda like they’re some sort of royalty.