$4.5 Million Settlement in New Jersey Jail Strip Search Lawsuit
$4.5 Million Settlement in New Jersey Jail Strip Search Lawsuit
New Jersey’s Cumberland County has agreed to pay $4.5 million to settle a class action strip search lawsuit. This is another huge settlement in Fourth Amendment claims of this type. Like others, this case involved the strip searching of arrestees held on minor charges.
“These searches involved an inspection of their naked bodies, as well as visual inspection of their body cavities,” said class counsel in a brief. “To facilitate an inspection of body cavities, detainees were required to manipulate their genitalia and buttocks, and sometimes ‘squat and cough’ in view of a Corrections Officer. Female detainees were also required to manipulate their breasts.”
The searches occurred between January 9, 2004, and December 1, 2006. The class includes persons arrested in that time period for a misdemeanor, child-support payment, failure to pay a traffic ticket, or have some other outstanding fine. The class is estimated to contain as many as 10,250 people. Persons fitting within the class requirements will receive up to $1,400 maximum. See: Suggs v. County of Cumberland, USDC, New Jersey, Case No: 1:06-CV-00087.
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Related legal case
Suggs v. County of Cumberland
| Year | 2008 |
|---|---|
| Cite | USDC, New Jersey, Case No: 1:06-CV-00087 |
| Level | District Court |
| Conclusion | Settlement |
| Damages | 4,500,000.00 |
| Injunction Status | N/A |