United States v. Gray
1:10-cr-10075
D. Mass.Dec 10, 2010Background
- Gray sold crack to a Boston Police undercover officer and fled; he was arrested and Mirandized.
- At the scene, Green found cash and perceived contraband in Gray's buttocks area during pat-down.
- At the station, a strip search was approved; Gray was told to remove clothing; he eventually resisted removing undershorts.
- Green moved to Gray’s rear, observed an object lodged in the buttocks, and retrieved a bagged contraband package.
- The package contained twenty bags of crack cocaine wrapped in paper towel; Gray moves to suppress as warrantless/unauthorized search.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the strip search without a warrant was justified | United States: reasonable suspicion from arrest and scene observations | Gray: no justification for warrantless search | Yes; reasonable suspicion supported the strip search. |
| Whether the search escalated to a visual cavity search | United States: evidence supported by suspicion; viewing buttocks permissible | Gray: overstepped into more intrusive search | Yes; search remained justified by reasonable suspicion. |
| Whether a manual body cavity search occurred | United States: no manual intrusion occurred | Gray: intrusion could be implied by manipulation | No manual body cavity search occurred. |
Key Cases Cited
- United States v. Barnes, 506 F.3d 58 (1st Cir. 2007) (reasonableness standard for searches of arrestees; strip/visual searches require suspicion)
- Burns v. Loranger, 907 F.2d 233 (1st Cir. 1990) (strip search justified by arrestee’s drug-arrest context; reasonable suspicion)
- Swain v. Spinney, 117 F.3d 1 (1st Cir. 1997) (establishes reasonable suspicion standard for bodily searches in arrestee context)
- Blackburn v. Snow, 771 F.2d 556 (1st Cir. 1985) (three types of bodily searches and related suspicions)