New Wisconsin law now further protects students from strip searches
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Wisconsin now has a law expanding student strip search bans following outrage after the Suring Public School District administrator forced six teenage girls to disrobe to their underwear so they could be searched for vaping products.
Gov. Tony Evers signed the bill into law on Friday, the same week the state Legislature advanced the bill.
Prior to this statutory change, Wisconsin’s definition of “strip search” involved searches that would expose a student’s private areas. The new law expands it to include searches that require a student to strip down to their underwear.
Then Suring Administrator Kelly Casper was charged with six counts of false imprisonment, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of six years, after she patted down the girls, ages 14 to 17, in the Jan. 17, 2022, incident. Neither the girls’ parents nor law enforcement were informed nor present at the time of the strip search, according to authorities.
Brown County Judge Marc Hammer subsequently dismissed the charges saying the facts didn't support the charges. This prompted legislators to craft a law that specifically prohibits strip searches of students by school personnel. The bill didn't make any changes to law enforcement's authority to conduct necessary searches during the course of an official investigation.
“Being treated with dignity and basic privacy is something that every student should expect when they enter our schools. The event at Suring revealed a statutory loophole that needed to be closed,” Rep. David Steffen, R-Howard, said. “This bill will protect our students from experiencing such intrusive searches in the future and I am pleased that it has been signed into law.”
The legislation was co-authored by state Sen. Eric Wimberger, R-Green Bay, who posted on Facebook, "Kids deserve to feel safe at school and this change ensures that what happened in Suring won't happen anywhere else."
Contact Kevin Dittman at 920-431-8416 or kdittman@gannett.com.
MORE: Oconto Falls mayoral candidates Clint Braun, Brad Rice share priorities, goals in Q&A
MORE: Oconto mayoral election is rematch between John Panetti, Cliff Martin
FOR MORE OCONTO COUNTY NEWS: Check out our website!
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Wisconsin law expands student strip search ban after Suring incident
