Supreme Court Ruling Allows Strip-Searches For Any Arrest

by Bangalore 61 Replies latest jw friends

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  james_woods

  People, my point is this: If the supreme court had ruled against ANY strip searches, it would have been interpreted that ALL strip searches should be banned.

  The only power the SC has on this is to say that a strip search is a violation of human rights - thus extending the ruling to ALL strip searches.

  Making a distinction over what kind of arrest, what kind of offense, etc. is in effect having the SC declare new criminal law - not their job. If a community (and I say state or local - not federal) wants to limit this procedure in certain cases, then let them declare such laws themselves.

  That, simply, is my point.
• 

  NewChapter

  I see. And yes, it could be huge problem to ask the SC to start micro managing these issues. The shame is that local and state governments made the appeal to the highest court necessary.

  NC
• 

  00DAD

  truth_b_known you have a PM
• 

  james_woods

  BTW - just as a side point: Wasn't the original arrest that got this ball rolling done in Florida?

  Given the current neighborhood watch shooting, and the botched case of the woman who killed her 2 year old kid, (and walked) wouldn't that be the irony of the year?
• 

  NewChapter

  Indeed. Never been to Florida. Sounds like a crazy place.
• 

  hemp lover

  The original arrest was in New Jersey.

  " People, my point is this: If the supreme court had ruled against ANY strip searches, it would have been interpreted that ALL strip searches should be banned.

  The only power the SC has on this is to say that a strip search is a violation of human rights - thus extending the ruling to ALL strip searches."

  I get what you're saying, but nothing I've read indicates it's that black and white. I agree with Breyer:

  "Justice Breyer said that the Fourth Amendment should be understood to bar strip-searches of people arrested for minor offenses not involving drugs or violence, unless officials had a reasonable suspicion that they were carrying contraband." (from the NYT)
• 

  breakfast of champions

  Hey, if they want to strip me naked, that's their problem! Yikes! The nightmares!
• 

  james_woods

  I get what you're saying, but nothing I've read indicates it's that black and white. I agree with Breyer:

  "Justice Breyer said that the Fourth Amendment should be understood to bar strip-searches of people arrested for minor offenses not involving drugs or violence, unless officials had a reasonable suspicion that they were carrying contraband." (from the NYT)

  The deal is, Hemp Lover, that if they had ruled against ANY strip searches - the ink would not have been dry on the ruling before the ACLU would be in federal court to ban ALL strip searches as a violation of civil rights.
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  Band on the Run

  During college I investigated inmate complaints for the NYC Board of Correction which had nominal oversight over the Department of Correction, In an attempt to mend fences, the black and Latino correctional officers ass'n gave the students a presentation. They brought a huge box of contraband found in cells. I thought it was be guns and knives. The inmates were very creative. Pencils and toothbrushes were fashioned into weapons.

  A strip search for any offense seems to cut into essential liberty. No one has been convicted yet. These cases revolve around a single vote. Perhaps that is fair. I want to read the opinion before I decide it is a blow to freedom. One thing is clear, though. Lawyers and judges don't ever feel an arrest will happen to them. I wonder if one could recover damages for an unlawful arrest. People say elections don't matter. Look at the math of the court in the most controversial cases. With the exception of Justice Thomas, I have respect for these justices.
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  wha happened?

  If a person is getting released into the prison population, they should be searched. You can imagine a "bad guy" purposely getting arrested on a fairly benign charge to get something into the prison system. Now if I get pulled over for a traffic infraction and I end up in the police station, I see no reason for a body search