I'd be willing to bet the Orange County Sheriff (Best in the country! /s) has a specific procedure for how to handle drug arrests and I suspect that will include such a search. Here's a case from the same place where they did searches on a warrant arrest:
Murcia v. County of Orange, 226 F. Supp. 2d 489 (S.D.N.Y. 2002) case opinion from the US District Court for the Southern District of New York
law.justia.com
Corrections Officers at the OCCF conducted a visual body search (or "hygiene check" as Sergeant Zappolo referred to it) of plaintiff upon his admission. (Id. at ¶ 26.) Sergeant Zappolo stated that the hygiene check was the routine procedure at the OCCF. (Zappolo Dep. at 11-12, Exh. I to Gersowitz Aff.) According to Sergeant Zappolo, hygiene checks of inmates include "a check of their personal artifacts, their clothing, jewelry, and a check of their body." (Id. at 13.) "Body searches" consists of:
The lifting of their arms, checking under their arms. Opening their mouth, lifting up their tongue. Turning their head from side to side, looking in the inside of their ears. Bending their ears forward, looking behind their ears. Running their fingers through their hair. Lifting up their genitals. Turning around. Picking up both feet, to check the bottoms of their feet. Bending over and a visual check of the rectum.
(Id. at 13-14.) Sergeant Zappolo testified that this procedure was performed on every new inmate at the OCCF: "if they come into the facility, they're searched." (Id. at 14.)
The second strip search of Mr. Murcia occurred after he was placed in the bullpen with other inmates. According to defendants, while plaintiff was in the book *492 ing/receiving "bullpen" along with other inmates awaiting his assignment to a housing unit, Jail personnel smelled cigarette smoke coming from the bullpen area. (Zappolo Aff. at ¶ 5.) Because cigarettes are contraband in the OCCF, Officers asked the inmates who had been smoking the cigarette. (Id. at ¶ 6.) None of the inmates admitted to having any cigarettes, hence the Officers removed them from the bullpen and conducted body searches on all of them in order to find the contraband. (Id. at ¶¶ 7-8.)
On February 22, the U.S. Marshals came to pick up plaintiff. Plaintiff was strip searched again on this day. (Rule 56.1 Statement at ¶ 30.) Defendants claim that the U.S. Marshals conducted this third strip search of plaintiff. Plaintiff was released from the custody of the U.S. Marshals later that day after they discovered that he was not the Jamie Murcia who was wanted for Bond Jumping.
It seems the key to making it all legal like is if there were a "individualized reasonable suspicion" rule being followed. There, the three factor test is:
1. Circumstances of the arrest
2. Nature of the crime charged
3. Particular characteristics of the arrestee.
For a felony drug arrest? Only #3 might mitigate a search decision.
Felonies being what they are, I imagine that some combination of the circumstances of the arrest, nature of the crime charged, and the particular characteristics of the arrestee will render strip searches of many more accused felons legitimate. But not all. For example, forgery and securities fraud are felonies under New York law. N.Y. Penal Law § 170.15 (McKinney 1998) (forgery); N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law § 352-c(5) (McKinney 2002) (securities fraud). It is hard to imagine why being accused of these crimes would automatically provide reasonable suspicion to believe that a detainee was concealing contraband.
As to the damage, it is NOT clear as A MATTER OF LAW how much she was damaged. Again, violation of a constitutional right has no number attached to it. One is not more hurt under the law if 100 violations of civil rights are proven over just one. The hurt is the hurt and one needs to get some actual damages to get any decision. Grandmother is now going to medical care providers not only to treat any harms that may have happened; but also to build up actual damages. With punitives capped at double digit multipliers, even if everyone is held to have done real bad things, how much is she out in money?
If there's a settlement from Disney, it is for PR value and not litigation risk.
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Edit:
What is it with Florida? Grandma got bent over by a deputy over CBD and an 8 year old handcuffed for felony battery for hitting a teacher in the chest.
On Monday video footage from a shocking 2018 incident where three police officers arrested a crying eight-year-old boy in Key West, Florida surfaced.
www.dailymail.co.uk
