There is a shocking lawsuit filed against the Citrus County Sheriff’s Department in Florida in which Leila Tarantino claims that she was pulled over for going through a stop sign and then stripped searched by the side of the road in front of her children.
Tarantino says that she was pulled over last July for allegedly rolling through a stop sign. She claims the officer immediately pulled his weapon and pulled her from the car without explanation or warning. She says that she was left in the back of his squad car for two hours and then strip searched by the side of the road in full view of bystanders. She further claims that a female officer “forcibly removed” a tampon from her during the strip search. She claims that there were five male officers and one female officer.
The civil action suit is against the government of Citrus County, Florida, Sheriff Jeffrey Dawsey and six unnamed police officers.
This is one of those cases where only a fraction of the allegations would need to be proven to make for an outrageous case. A strip search by the side of the road is itself a gross violation of standard procedures. We have not however heard from the officers or the department. They may contest that this was an actual strip search and contest the specific graphic details of the complaint below.
The long period of detention and lack of charges however raise serious questions regarding the basis for holding Tarantino. She was released with only a citation.
Here is a copy of the lawsuit.
Source: RT
Kudos: Catherine Maloney
I find it strange that her children, 1 and 4, are not also named in the lawsuit. Were they left alone in the car for more than 2 hours? Were they protected from the heat? Some important information is missing.
Thank you Gene!
nick,
Mother of the year or not isn’t the issue here.
Abuse of authority is not excused because the victim isn’t pristine.
This is a superb legal website. I’m amazed @ how intelligent folks, interested or employed in the justice system, can jump to such conclusions. What is provided to us is THE COMPLAINT, THE PLAINTIFF’S VERSION OF WHAT OCCURED. Now, I agree w/ Mr. Turley that if just some of this is true, the key being the alleged strip search, then this is bad and Citrus County had better set aside a big reserve for damages.
A cursory check by myself, who has worked civil litigation cases as a PI for decades, shows the plainiff is not mother of the year. I will leave it @ that. The Citrus County Court records are available online for free. You can do your own research.
Having worked both criminal and civil cases I could tell stories that would make you hair stand up about police abuses. Conversely, I could tell you stories about civil complaints that were pure fiction. This looks bad. Things are however not always what they first appear.
IN THE LAST YEAR I DO BELIEVE THAT STRIP SEARCHES ARE NOW TOTALLY LEGAL. PART OF THE NEW KEEPING UP SAFE POLICY.
And the police wonder why their image with the general public is so bad and getting worse every day.
I know there are cops out there who do the job and do it both right and for the right reasons. One of you should have intervened in this outrageous travesty. Good cop? Not when your silence and loyalty to your “brotherhood” over the citizens you allegedly serve makes you complicit in criminal misconduct by your fellow officers. Make no mistake about it either. This can only be described as a criminal abuse of power. Every officer involved should be suspended and the instigators should be charged and fired.
Florida. Again. Surprised? I think not.
why is Ms.Tarantinos name made public w/the complaint and none of the inolved Officers names? That in and of itself, given the Florida crimate, is intimidation. And endangerment.
femeister: yea, is this just the start of the new strip searching all of us will be subjected to under the Supreme Court ruling?
They can make any of us naked on demand anywhere they wish? For any reason they wish?
the cops need to be charged with child endangerment , rape and kidnapping and go directly to jail like any of us would if we did anything similar to this to anyone..
I agree with our Professor on that if just a fraction of the accusations are held to be true this would be an outrage.
I have never heard of a case of a strip search being performed outside a facility. The only time I could imagine it being performed is if there was a firearm hidden somewhere. For drugs, not in the field just take her to the jail and do it there. I suppose in theory a woman might be inclined to drive around her children while having a derringer within her vagina but the practical minded person in me believes at at this moment zero women in the world population are doing this currently.
It would be interesting to read what the deputies’ reports were to this.
PS Where were the her children taken to protect them from heat exposure?
Nobody has asked about what was the police motivation. ?????
Instruction of those not sufficiently adept in humiliation of citizens?
A way to get some laughs and kill two hours, including humiliating the female officer??
What’s the ratio between such violations of rights and the number of suits???
It seems like a new torture technique is developed each week.
So the thugs are at it again. Sadly these things are becoming less and less surprising.
Some comments on my reading of the Complaint filed in Federal Court which can be accessed by clicking that blue spot above.
1. If they would add claims for conspiracy pursuant to 42 U.S.C. Section 1985 they can use this to make all the named defendants liable (except the county) for all of the conduct of any single named defendant. And, they can use the statements of a conspirator against a co conspirator as an Admission under Rule 801 of the Federal Rules of Evidence. Admission of party opponent, in this case a conspiring party opponent. So, if one of the defendants snitches out the others then you have some real ammo.
2. The inclusion of the 9th Amendment in the portions of the Constitution which was violated was smart. The right of privacy is central here.
3. I would add the 5th Amendment. The plaintiff who was strip searched was deprived of life, LIBERTY, and property (the tampon at the very least) without due process of law. Some will think that the 14th Amendment covers this but the 5th needs to be claimed for several reasons.
4. I would segregate the state law or state constitutional violations from the federal claims under the federal constittuion. So, I would omit the state constitution in that Count for the federal claims and add it in a separate Count just before the count for battery. I would have a separate state law claim (Count) for assault, battery, trespass, false arrest, etc.
The reason I would add the 5th Amendment is that some judges in former slave states are what we call “Unreconstructed” to the applicabliity of the 14th Amendment to crimes and civil offenses committed by cops in their states–even federal judges. This deprivation of the plaintiff’s liberty interest can stand on its own but can also be funneled through the 14th Amendment. Small point but worth mentioning.
At deposition I would ask the first witness deposed if they think it is a violation of some person’s rights to strip some of their clothes off. Then I would ask them how they would feel if their mom got treated like they treated this Hispanic lady. Then I would amend the Complaint and add claims of race and ethnic discrimination under 42 U.S.C. Section 1983 and 1985. In discovery try to obtain all of their radio communications which might be recorded.
Yeah, Florida is still losing it …
Florida you say….
Seems to me like there was something a while back saying strip searching was fine for anybody and anything. Wasn’t it one of the courts that said it okay? I remember there being a huge stink about it at the time, at least from people who read the article I did. I don’t know if it was on here, I don’t think I was reading JT at the time. But if that was true, strip searches for rolling stops are fine (and probably encouraged). I don’t however, remember, if it specified WHERE these strips searches could be conducted. And don’t ya’ll start on Florida again. This was for the whole country! (We just lead the way!)
This is a serious case of carelessness by police
They *had only SIX officers at the scene*. ( for 2 hours)
Where the HELL was the SWAT team? Two SWAT teams even?
This woman and her kids were obviously very dangerous.
Perhaps the lack of personnel at the scene was due to budgetary constraints.
This would be a disgrace. Law enforcement needs more funding. They need bigger assault weapons and armoured military vehicles – and more people.
Strip these cops, and march them through their town, naked…..