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S.D.Ind.: Strip search for small quantity of marijuana was unreasonable

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

"It all began with a broken license plate light. One thing led to another, and the ensuing traffic stop in Madison, Indiana has become the subject of elaborate and expensive litigation that requires this lengthy tour through wide tracts of Fourth Amendment law, federal civil rights remedies, and state tort law." The officer smell marijuana coming from the car, and he searched it finding only a trace amount. The three plaintiffs were taken to a fire station and strip searched, and a small quantity was found on one. A strip for a small quantity of marijuana was unjustified in this case, and it survives summary judgment. Lessley v. City of Madison, 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 74618 (S.D. Ind. August 21, 2009): It should go without saying that strip-searches are highly invasive...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on August 26, 2009 (boomark / email).