Spring woman claims constitutional violation in body cavity probe
Dylan Baddour, Houston Chronicle Updated 7:56 pm, Friday, August 7, 2015
A Spring woman claims sheriff's deputies violated constitutional protections by conducting a body cavity search on the concrete of a Texaco gas station parking lot during a routine traffic stop in late June.
Charnesia Corley, a 21-year-old African American, was driving in northern Harris County around 10:30 p.m. on June 21 when a male deputy pulled her over for allegedly running a stop sign. He said he smelled marijuana, handcuffed Corley, put her in his vehicle and searched her car for almost an hour. He didn't find any pot, according to her attorney, Sam Cammack.
Returning to his car where Corley was held, the deputy again said he smelled marijuana and called in a female deputy to conduct a cavity search. When the female deputy arrived, she told Corley to pull her pants down, but Corley protested because she was cuffed and had no underwear on. The deputy ordered Corley to bend over, pulled down her pants and began to search her.
Then, according to Cammack, Corley stood up and protested, so the deputy threw her to the ground and restrained her while another female was called in to assist. When backup arrived,
each deputy held one of Corley's legs apart to conduct the probe.
"What these officers did out there at the Texaco station was unconscionable. I've worked many big cases and I've never seen that," said Cammack, who plans to sue the Harris County Sheriff's Office in federal court.
The Sheriff's Office said they could not comment on an ongoing investigation, but confirmed an incident took place.
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When she arrived, she told Corley to pull her pants down, but Corley protested because she was cuffed and had no underwear on.
The deputy ordered Corley to bend over, pulled down her pants and began to insert her finger into Corley's vagina.
Then, according to Cammack, Corley stood up and protested, so the deputy threw her to the ground and restrained her while another female was called in to assist. When backup arrived, each deputy held one of Corley's legs apart while they conducted the orifice probe.
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According to court documents, Corley was arrested for possession of marijuana and for resisting arrest;
a criminal complaint says Corley pushed a deputy with her hip and kicked her with her foot. KTRK TV reports deputies seized a half-gram of marijuana, but didn't say where it was located.
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