“On Monday, a 5-4 majority of the U.S. Supreme Court approved strip searches of everyone entering jail after arrest for even the most minor offense. The ruling exposed a disturbing insensitivity.
The plaintiffs in the case, Florence v. Board of Chosen Freeholders, were arrested for relatively minor offenses, such as walking a dog without a leash. Their lawsuit challenged a policy in two New Jersey detention facilities where all arrested people are strip-searched before joining the inside population.
In one facility, this means “a complete disrobing, followed by an examination of the nude inmate … by the supervising officer, which is then followed by a supervised shower with a delousing agent.” In the other facility, the booking process “required groups of 30 to 40 arrestees to enter a large shower room, simultaneously remove all of their clothing, place it in boxes and then shower.”
If you have ever driven over the speed limit in New Jersey, it could be you in that shower.”—
Court ruling on strip searches is unjust – CNN.com
I think the Court’s decision is beyond disappointing, but it has helped to expose a real problem in America. Too many Americans expect only the Court to guard their civil liberties. Americans need to demand that all branches of government guard their civil liberties. If your local police department is strip-searching people who speed, you need to vote all responsible office-holders out of office. You need to do this even if you agree with them on hot-button issues like abortion, over which they actually exercise no actual control.
This is horrifying.
And while I would certainly not compare it to what went on in concentration camps during WWII, the imagery this invoked for me was eerily reminiscent of a scene I think was from ‘Schindler’s List’. Perhaps that’s unique to my neural synapses, but this is still dehumanizing and should not be tolerated.
thecheekylibertarian 