Savard v. Rhode Island.U.S. Appeals CourtSEARCHES Savard v. Rhode Island Rhode Island, island, United States Rhode Island, island, 15 mi (24 km) long and 5 mi (8 km) wide, S R.I., at the entrance to Narragansett Bay. It is the largest island in the state, with steep cliffs and excellent beaches. , 320 F.3d 34 (1st Cir. 2003). Arrestees brought a [section] 1983 action against a state, alleging they had been subjected to illegal strip and visual body cavity searches A body cavity search is either a visual search or a manual internal inspection of body cavities for prohibited material (contraband), such as illegal drugs, money, or weapons. . The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants and the arrestees appealed. The appeals court reversed and remanded. The appeals court held that the officials were not entitled to qualified immunity Qualified immunity is a doctrine in United States law providing immunity from suit to government officials performing discretionary functions when their action did not violate clearly established law. Qualified immunity was created by the U.S. absent a determination that they were objectively reasonable in believing that their conduct in imposing the searches was lawful. The plaintiffs had been arrested in Rhode Island for non-violent, non-drug related minor offenses. After their arrest they were taken to a state prison and subjected to strip and body cavity searches. The appeals court held that the searches violated the arrestee's constitutional rights, and that the defendant officials had fair warning that reasonable suspicion Reasonable suspicion is a legal standard in United States law that a person has been, is, or is about to be, engaged in criminal activity based on specific and articulable facts and inferences. was needed in order to subject persons arrested for minor offenses to such searches. (Rhode Island Adult Correctional Institution Noun 1. correctional institution - a penal institution maintained by the government detention camp, detention home, detention house, house of detention - an institution where juvenile offenders can be held temporarily (usually under the supervision of a juvenile ) |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion