On June 20, 2015 a 20-year-old college student, Charneshia Corley, was pulled over by Harris County Sheriff Deputies for allegedly running a stop sign and failing to use a turn signal. While the Deputies interviewed her, they claimed to smell marijuana emanating from her car. After thoroughly searching Ms. Corley’s, they found nothing. The Deputies then decided to conduct a visual strip search and a manual body cavity search of Ms. Corley. The entire 11 minute search was caught on tape by the car cam.
Ms. Corley filed a formal complaint with the internal affairs division of the Houston Police Department. The two Deputies were indicted, but the charges were later dropped.
Ms. Corley also filed a suit against Harris County claiming that her constitutional rights were violated. The pleadings allege that “the Deputies conducted an improper manual body cavity search of Ms. Corley, the improper search was conducted in public, in a non-sterile environment and with unwarranted and unjustified physical force, and the search was done prior to Ms. Corley’s arrest, without a warrant and without any probable cause.”
The Harris County Commissioner’s Court agreed to pay a $185,000 settlement in the lawsuit brought by Ms. Corley.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of police brutality, it is important to find a skilled law firm to handle your claim. The law firm of Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner is the oldest personal injury firm in Texas, and our attorneys are standing by to assist with your claim. Call us today at (713) 222-7211 or 713-222-7211 for your free consultation.