Final answer:
School officials can conduct searches for evidence of policy or law violations, but the Fourth Amendment protects students against unreasonable searches and seizures. Searches must be reasonable in initiation and scope. Strip searches are generally seen as excessively intrusive unless justified by strong evidence.
Step-by-step explanation:
Whether an inspector or any school official can take physical material out of a pharmacy connects to a broader issue of search and seizure in school settings. Schools have certain powers to search students and their belongings if they suspect a violation of school policy or law. However, the Fourth Amendment protects individuals from unreasonable searches and seizures. In the context of schools, the U.S. Supreme Court has established that any search conducted must be reasonably justified at its inception and reasonably related in scope to the circumstances which justified the interference in the first place.
Specifically, the question refers to the Supreme Court case New Jersey v. T.L.O. (1985), which clarified that school officials do not need a warrant to search students, but they must have reasonable grounds for believing that the search will turn up evidence that the student has violated or is violating either the law or the rules of the school.
Regarding strip searches, the Supreme Court case Safford Unified School District v. Redding (2009) found that such a search was excessively intrusive for a middle school student who was suspected of possessing and distributing ibuprofen, which is against school rules. The court determined that the strip search violated the Fourth Amendment because it was not justified nor proportional to the school's needs to maintain order and discipline.
Thus, while school officials can take physical evidence such as prescription drugs if found during a lawful search, any search, especially highly intrusive ones like strip searches, must be conducted within the boundaries set by previous judicial decisions respecting students' Fourth Amendment rights.