On April 8, 2005, two inmates at the Camden County Jail in New Jersey filed a class action lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the Sheriff of the jail and Camden County officials in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. The plaintiffs, represented by private counsel, asked the Court for declaratory and injunctive relief, as well as damages and attorneys' fees, alleging that the defendants had violated plaintiffs' constitutional rights by strip searching them at the jail. They argued that they should not have been strip searched because they had been charged only with petty crimes and traffic violations. They also argued that a subclass of plaintiffs had paid their bail and were unlawfully detained at the time of their strip search.

On March 27, 2006, the District Court (Magistrate Judge Joel B. Rosen) dismissed without prejudice the City of Camden, the Camden City Police Department, and the police chief, and the deputy police chief. The Court noted that all parties had agreed to dismiss these defendants pursuant to the settlement talks that were in progress. On February 28, 2007, the District Court (District Judge Joseph H. Rodriguez) granted the plaintiffs' motion for class certification, pursuant to an agreement of the parties.

On July 17, 2007, the parties asked the District Court to dismiss the case, notifying the Court that they had reached a settlement agreement. On June 9, 2008, Judge Rodriguez granted the request and issued an order of dismissal. In the settlement agreement, the defendants affirmatively stated that they had stopped strip searching detainees on a blanket basis as of April 27, 2005. They also stated that they had stopped strip searching non-indictable detainees in the absence of reasonable suspicion. The defendants maintained that their written policy as of 2007 was constitutional, and had been reviewed by the New Jersey Department of Corrections for compliance with state law, but they agreed to consider formally revising their policy as needed. The defendants agreed to retrain all corrections officers regarding the strip search policy, requiring all officers to sign a form reflecting their understanding of the policy. The defendants also agreed to release, in due time, inmates who had paid their bail, rather than holding them unnecessarily. Finally, the defendants agreed to pay $7.5 million into a settlement fund, to be distributed to plaintiffs as damages, with the named class representatives to receive $15,000 each, and with $200,000 also deducted from the larger sum to pay the costs of administration and notice regarding the settlement. Likewise, prevailing parties' attorneys fees would be deducted from the larger sum, leaving a "distribution amount" from which payments would be made to the class. Final Judgment was issued on September 22, 2008.

The court maintained jurisdiction throughout the course of the consent decree. As of January 31, 2018, there was no further substantial activity in the court, and the case is now closed.

Kristen Sagar - 03/22/2009


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