In 1984, a person arrested and imprisoned for DWI filed a lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. §1983 in Arizona state court alleging claims of false arrest, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution and invasion of privacy resulting from being strip searched. Plaintiff claimed that the City of Wilcox's blanket policy requiring that all prisoners be subjected to a search and body cavity search regardless what offense they were charged with was unreasonable.

The Superior Court entered summary judgment in favor of defendants on Plaintiff's malicious prosecution claim and entered a directed verdict on the other counts.

Plaintiff appealed to the Arizona Supreme Court. The Court affirmed the lower court's grant of summary judgment on the malicious prosecution and false arrest claims, but reversed the decision on the due process (right to bail) and "cruel and unusual punishment" claims, and held that the blanket strip search policy was an unreasonably burdensome invasion of the arrestee's right to privacy.

Shadi Peterman - 06/23/2007


compress summary