The plaintiff in this case was strip-searched after being arrested for a minor offense. He was not suspected of possessing drugs or weapons, and he was ultimately not charged with any crime, but the City of Chester's policy allowed police to conduct strip searches on anyone they arrested. In this lawsuit, filed by private counsel on February 25, 2019 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the plaintiff named the City of Chester and three police officers as defendants. He alleged that under 42 U.S.C. §1983 the city had violated his Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights, as well as his rights under Pennsylvania law. He sought compensatory damages, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees and costs. The case was assigned to Judge Robert F. Kelly.
On May 1, 2019, the plaintiff dismissed the majority of the claims in his complaint, stipulating that his Monell claim against the city would be limited to its policy and custom of strip searching detainees, and dismissing all other grounds for liability against the city (with prejudice), including his claim for punitive damages, his claim of malicious prosecution, and his state law claims. 3 months later (August 1), he stipulated to the dismissal of one of the police officer defendants.
The case was reassigned to Judge Paul S. Diamond in October 2019.
The following year, on May 20, 2020, Judge Diamond denied the city’s motion for summary judgment. The court held that it "cannot conclude as a matter of law that the City’s Policy comports with the Fourth Amendment." 2020 WL 2571100.
On May 27, 2020, the plaintiff filed an amended complaint, seeking class certification of a class of individuals who were, like him, arrested on minor charges and strip-searched in spite of the police having no particularized suspicion that they were carrying drugs, weapons, or other contraband. The putative class included all such people arrested from March 1, 1995 until such date as injunctive relief would be granted. This expanded complaint sought class-wide compensatory and punitive damages, a declaration that the city had violated the constitutional and statutory rights of the class members, and preliminary and permanent injunctive relief. The proposed injunction would require the city to “establish appropriate policies and procedures for when strip-searches may be lawfully carry out,” and would prohibit the city from conducting strip searches in minor arrests without a particularized suspicion that the suspect was concealing drugs, weapons, or other contraband. The complaint also sought attorney’s fees and costs under 42 U.S.C. §1988.
As of June 16, 2020, a class certification hearing is scheduled for August 28, 2020.
Gregory Marsh - 06/17/2020
compress summary
