The Ohio Supreme Court is weighing the constitutionality of a student's backpack search which authorities say led first to the discovery of bullets and later a gun.

The issue before high court is whether a second search of the backpack violated the student's privacy rights, which are generally weaker inside the school walls.

Courts say that schools need "reasonable suspicion" for a search, as compared to the higher "probable cause" evidence outside of school settings.

A security official at the Whetstone High School in Columbus searched the backpack in the year 2013 after it was found on a bus, according to the court filings. Records show that, the official conducted a second search after he recalled that the student had alleged ties with a gang, and found 13 bullets after dumping the contents in bag.

According to the court records, the search led to police being called and the discovery of a gun in another bag with the student had. The student, Joshua Polk, has been charged with the possessing a deadly weapon in a school safety zone.

The case is still in pending. The prosecutors in Franklin County appealed after two lower courts tossed out the evidence against Polk because of that second search.

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The circumstances of the search can not be justified, even in today's environment with concerns about the school shootings, the Franklin Court appeals court ruled in the January of last year.

The high court scheduled the arguments for Wednesday, and the decision is months away.

Prosecutors argue that Polk, who was 18 at that time, gave up his privacy rights when the bag was left on the school bus.

Seth Gilbert, an assistant Franklin County prosecutor said that not every discovery of a dangerous item in a backpack means police should be called.

Six school associations representing the school boards, administrators, teachers and others have sided with the prosecutors to argue that the search was justified.

Polk's attorneys argue that the school went too far when the security officer conducted a fuller search simply because of the rumors he recalled about Polk.

Polk is backed by 15 youth law groups around the country who are urging that the Supreme Court not to overturn the lower court rulings. They say the increased presence of the security officers in schools nationally is creating a culture that refers thousands of students to police each year, which are raising concerns about their constitutional rights.

Mrudula Duddempudi.