Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Criminal Law Blogs -> Fourth Amendment

Criminal Law

: Fourth Amendment

CA5: Strip search for misdemeanor hindering violated the Fourth Amendment

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

The Fifth Circuit holds that it still will require reasonable suspicion of contraband to strip search a detainee for misdemeanor hindering apprehension. Jimenez v. Wood County, Texas, 09-40892 (5th Cir. September 23, 2010): The County argues that it was not required to base its search of Ms. Jimenez on reasonable suspicion for two reasons. First, it argues that we should reverse our prior precedents and hold that, under Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U.S. 520 (1979), the Fourth Amendment permits visual strip searches of all jail detainees upon being booked into a detention facility, regardless of reasonable suspicion. Second, the County argues in the alternative that the district court erred in classifying hindering apprehension as a “minor offense,” and that the nature of Ms...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on September 24, 2010 (boomark / email).