Calvin Ray Marruquin v. Henderson County Detention Center et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky partially grants and partially denies Defendant Justin Whitaker’s motion for summary judgment in a prisoner civil-rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. The court holds that the pat-down, body scan, and visual strip search of Plaintiff Calvin Ray Marruquin were reasonable under the Fourth Amendment, but finds a genuine dispute of material fact concerning Whitaker’s alleged manual removal of a drug baggie from Marruquin’s rectum. The court permits Whitaker to file a renewed summary-judgment motion addressing that claim and qualified immunity.

Holdings

1. The search did not violate the Fourth Amendment. A pat-down, body scan, and strip-search or visual body-cavity search of a person arrested on felony drug charges were reasonable in scope, manner, and justification when conducted pursuant to the detention center's policy and in a private room.
2. Summary judgment was denied on Plaintiff's claim that Whitaker manually removed the baggie from Plaintiff's rectum without a warrant or medical assistance because the verified complaint and Whitaker's affidavit presented a genuine dispute of material fact regarding who removed the baggie and how the removal occurred.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the pat-down, electronic body scan, and strip-search or visual body-cavity search of a detainee arrested on felony drug charges violated the Fourth Amendment.
2. Whether summary judgment was appropriate on Plaintiff's claim that Defendant Whitaker manually removed a baggie from Plaintiff's rectum without a warrant or medical assistance.
3. Whether the court should permit a renewed motion for summary judgment addressing the merits and qualified-immunity defense on the manual-removal claim.

Disposition

other