Is e-mail private?

[Eileen Brouwer <ebrouwer@NSLSILUS.ORG>]

Hi Netters!
     One of the teachers in our district just got an e-mail from a
relative in Florida warning him to be careful about what he writes in any
message sent to a Florida recipient. He explained that e-mail there is
considered public, cannot be deleted, and must be given to newspapers at
their request--implying that newspapers are scanning e-mail continually.
Is this really true?  Can anyone point me to a source of information on
this?  We are just beginning our planning for an acceptable use policy
and the implications here are very significant.
Thanks for your help

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Eileen Brouwer                           Prospect High School Library
ebrouwer@nslsilus.org                    Mt. Prospect, Il