Shaw University students' rights violated during traffic stop, DOJ complaint alleges
Exterior of Shaw University, located in Raleigh, North Carolina (FOX 5 Atlanta).
RALEIGH, N.C. - The president of a historically Black university in North Carolina says she filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice claiming one of their charter buses was stopped and searched unnecessarily.
The students aboard the bus were headed to an economic conference in Atlanta on Oct. 5 when the bus was pulled over by the sheriff's deputies for Spartanburg and Cherokee counties along Interstate 85 in South Carolina reportedly for "improper lane use."
Shaw University President Dr. Paulette Dillard believes the search was racially motivated.
"There is real harm done when individual rights are overlooked, ignored, or denied — and when it becomes commonplace to violate the civil liberties of innocent Americans traveling on an Interstate highway. There is a need and an obligation to protect every individual’s civil rights," Dr. Dillard said.
In the complaint sent to the justice department, the university calls the encounter "a drug stop masquerading as a traffic stop." Dan Blue, a partner at Blue LLP that represents Shaw University, says one of the K-9s got a "hit" one of the bags, which they searched and found nothing. The complaint also states the deputies performed several searches without students' consent.
"The bus driver received a warning citation; and nothing illegal or inappropriate was found. But that’s not the real issue. The real issue is why and how a minor traffic violation immediately turned into a drug search," said Dillard during a press conference on Monday.
Dr. Dillard says she is unaware if there's a video showing the bus swerving or a recorded conversation about it. She says following the stop, drug-sniffing dogs were used to search the luggage compartment and several students' personal belongings.
"It begs the question whether every vehicle that is stopped for a lane violation is also searched by dogs for drugs. And if not, what is the probable cause that makes that determination? Who gets searched and why? We need to ask the question why the officer on board the bus immediately asked the students if they were transporting some type of illegal or illicit content within their bags – something that, quote, 'wasn’t supposed to be there,'" Dr. Dillard said. "This situation is a stark reminder that the fight for civil rights is still an ongoing necessity."
The stop during the state's "Operation Rolling Thunder," an effort that focuses law enforcement efforts to target drugs and other illegal items during a single week each year. Both the sheriff's deputies in Spartanburg and Cherokee counties declined to comment following this week's press conference held by the university.
"The additional bags they opened were green and purple and blue. They were not the original bag. This was a continued search to find contraband. They did not find anything except for the donuts and prescription allergy medication," said Blue.
The letter highlights three areas of concern:
- Search and seizure under the pretext of an alleged lane violation
- Violation of the passengers’ reasonable expectation of privacy
- Operation Rolling Thunder
The complaint claims the operation "appears to create a perverse incentive for officers to trample the rights of innocent motorists in the pursuit of awards." The letter is a "request for an investigation into Title VI and Civil Rights Violations committed by the Spartanburg County and the Cherokee County, South Carolina Sheriff’s Offices."