Karr v. Schmidt, 460 F.2d 609 (5th Cir. 1972)

Facts:

A male high school student with long hair sued the principal of a Texas high school after he was denied enrollment because his hair length violated the school's "good grooming" policy. This policy prohibited any male student's hair from hanging over his ears or collar, or from obstructing his vision.

Issue:

Whether a public school student has a First Amendment right to wear long hair to school.

Holding:

By a narrow 8-7 margin, the Fifth Circuit held that a student does not have a constitutional right to wear his hairstyle however he sees fit.

Reasoning:

Observing that "the most frequently asserted basis for a constitutional right to wear long hair lies in the First Amendment," the appeals court majority stated: "For some, no doubt, the wearing of long hair is intended to convey a discrete message to the world. But, for many, the wearing of long hair is simply a matter of personal taste or the result of peer group influence."

The appeals court focused on the following statement from the Supreme Court’s opinion in Tinker:

The problem posed by the present case does not relate to regulation of the length of skirts or the type of clothing, to hair style or deportment. . . Our problem involves direct, primary First Amendment rights akin to "pure speech."

The majority reasoned that this language from Tinker indicates that students do not have a First Amendment right to wear any hairstyle they desire.

Majority:

"For some, no doubt, the wearing of long hair is intended to convey a discrete message to the world. But for many, the wearing of long hair is simply a matter of personal taste or the result of peer group influence." (Judge Lewis Morgan)

Dissent:

"I submit that under the First and Fourteenth Amendments, if a student wishes to show his disestablishmentarianism by wearing long hair or has the whim to wear long hair, antidisestablishmentarians on public school boards have no constitutional authority to prevent it." (Judge John Minor Wisdom)

Last updated: Monday, September 6, 2010 | 12:53:11