Appeals court strikes down body cavity search
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – A federal appeals court has struck down an invasive body cavity search that was central to the conviction of a drug suspect in Anderson County.
Judges for the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati on Monday called the medically induced paralysis under which Felix Booker was searched a “shock to the conscience.”
The Knoxville News Sentinel (http://bit.ly/19KeRmy ) noted that, with two sheriff’s deputies looking on, a doctor at Oak Ridge Methodist Medical Center probed Booker’s rectum to find a bag containing crack cocaine.
A divided court panel ruled Dr. Michael LaPaglia acted as an extension of the state and the act violated protections against unreasonable search and seizure.
