Suspicionless searches on the T

Michael Blim slinks by the jodhpur-clad transit cops doing a bag search at Stony Brook, but that gets him to pondering the police's newfound ability to conduct searches without warrants, at least on MBTA property:

... The 4th amendment guarantee against unreasonable search and seizure that in many areas of law restricts police searches to those whom they suspect of a crime or who arouse suspicion of criminal intent no longer applies to subway and bus riders. Any city that wants to conduct "suspicion-less" searches on their mass transit can. The judicial trick is that because no one is under suspicion, everyone can be under suspicion. Anyone’s rights can be violated so long as everyone’s rights can be violated. Call it equal opportunity rights violation. ...

Via Brian Kane, who has more to say on the topic.