Imagine how you would feel if you woke up from a nap to find nine unexpected, uniformed people in your bedroom searching through your personal belongings. This is the challenge posed by Katherine McFadden, a scenario that closely resembles the experience of her daughter—a first-year student at Durham College in Oshawa—in the last week of September.

The student returned from school to find police officers, a fire marshal, and a building inspector searching her personal possessions. A locksmith had picked the locks to her rental home to gain access. Her roommate was awakened from a nap when the officials entered her bedroom to search.

McFadden’s daughter is only one of many students who had their houses raided by police and city bylaw officers in September. The city of Oshawa gained search warrants to enter 17 houses being rented by students to confiscate leases and rental agreements. At least 10 houses were searched.

Students were given no notice of the searches and houses were entered whether or not the students were at home. One student said officers searched his home for three hours, overturning his mattress and going through all of his roommates personal papers to try to find a lease agreement.

“I understand how frustrating it must be for nearby neighbours to have so many students living in the area,” McFadden wrote in her letter to the editor, “but surely the city of Oshawa can find a different way of combating this problem without intimidating and frightening young adults by picking the lock and entering without notice.”

David Selby, of the Durham Regional Police communications unit, neither confirmed nor denied that officers were involved in the raids. …

Search warrants are systematic discrimination against students: critics