Jonathan was a 12th grade student at Davenport Center High School until the incident on February 18, 1999, that resulted in his expulsion for the remainder of the school year. On that date, Jonathan reported to school staff that $500 had been stolen from his locker in the boys' locker room. The associate principal and the police liaison officer went to the boys' locker room and began to search the students present in groups of three. Jonathan left the locker room and went to the gym, where a school staff member saw him give something to another student. The police liaison officer then searched Jonathan and found on his person a baggie containing what appeared to be drugs. The Davenport Police Department later determined the substance to be 8 "rocks" of crack cocaine, some packaged, with a total weight of 2.6 grams, enough for 26 doses. The $500 was never found.

On February 26, 1999, the District's Administrative Council held a hearing to consider Jonathan's possible expulsion for the remainder of the year. At that hearing, Jonathan admitted to being a drug user and said the drugs found on him had been bought for his personal use. On March 9, 1999, the Board voted to expel Jonathan for the remainder of the school year for violation of District policy that prohibits the use, possession or distribution of controlled substances by students on school property. The administrative law judge and the hearing panel found no basis upon which the District Board's decision should be reversed.

That the decision of the Board of Directors of the Davenport Community School District, made on March 9, 1999, to expel Jonathan Bassett for the remainder of the 1998-99 school year, be affirmed.