## Facts

- A 13-year-old student, Devon T., attended Booker T. Washington Middle School in Baltimore.
- A school security guard, with the assistant principal present, directed Devon to empty his pockets.
- Devon produced a brown bag containing twenty pink zip-lock bags of heroin.
- The State alleged conduct that would constitute possession of heroin with intent to distribute if committed by an adult.
- Devon asserted (1) the common-law infancy defense for children ages 7 to 14 and (2) a Fourth Amendment challenge to the school search.
- The juvenile court adjudicated Devon delinquent; Devon appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether the evidence was sufficient to rebut the common-law presumption that a child between seven and fourteen lacks criminal capacity by proving the child knew the difference between right and wrong at the time of the act.
2. Whether directing a student to empty his pockets at school was an unreasonable search under the Fourth Amendment.

## Decision

- The appellate court affirmed the delinquency adjudication.
- The court held the State presented sufficient evidence, beyond a reasonable doubt, to rebut the infancy presumption and establish Devon’s capacity to know right from wrong.
- The court held the search was constitutional because it was supported by reasonable suspicion and was reasonable in scope under the school-search standard.

## Legal Principles

- In Maryland, a child under seven is conclusively presumed incapable of crime; a child between seven and fourteen is presumed incapable but the presumption is rebuttable.
- The State rebuts the 7–14 presumption by proving that, at the time of the conduct, the child knew the difference between right and wrong; the inquiry focuses on cognition.
- Evidence relevant to rebut capacity may include proximity to age fourteen, normal cognitive functioning, the character of the conduct (including its sophistication), and behavior indicating consciousness of guilt.
- In the school setting, a search is valid under the Fourth Amendment if reasonable under all the circumstances: (1) justified at inception by reasonable suspicion and (2) reasonable in scope in light of the suspected infraction.
- A limited directive to empty pockets, when tied to reasonable suspicion of drug activity, may be a permissible school search.

## Conclusion

The court affirmed the delinquency finding, concluding that the State proved the juvenile’s capacity to distinguish right from wrong despite the common-law infancy presumption and that the school official’s pocket-emptying search satisfied the Fourth Amendment’s reasonable-suspicion and reasonable-scope requirements for student searches.


In re Devon T., 85 Md. App. 674, 584 A.2d 1287 (Ct. Spec. App. 1991)