Delaware Attorney General Kathleen Jennings is “deeply troubled” by the stop and search of a bus carrying the Delaware State University women’s lacrosse team last month, she wrote In a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice requesting a review.
Jennings called it “a troubling incident that is deserving of your attention” in her correspondence to U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Kristen Clarke. Jennings expressed gratitude to Clarke for the incident already being on “your office’s radar.”
The DSU bus was stopped April 20 on I-95 in Liberty County, Georgia, after deputies said the vehicle had illegally traveled in the left lane. Several players’ bags were searched after a narcotics-sniffing K-9 dog provided what Sheriff’s Office deputies termed “an alert.”
Legality of Delaware State bus search in question
The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits “unreasonable searches and seizures” without probable cause or a warrant. An illegal traffic stop is also grounds for a civil suit.
CAMERA FOOTAGE CONTRADICTS: DSU team bus was searched
However, the Supreme Court did rule in 2005 that a drug-sniffing dog may be employed outside the vehicle during a routine traffic stop if it does not unreasonably extend the length of the stop. That use does not require reasonable suspicion. The bus was stopped for approximately 30 minutes.
“By all accounts,” Jennings wrote, “these young women represented their school and our state with class – and they were rewarded with a questionable-at-best search through their belongings in an effort to find contraband that did not exist. Not only did the deputies find nothing illegal in the bags; they did not issue a single ticket for the alleged traffic infraction.”
NOT SURPRISED: Delaware, Georgia residents say bus stop typical
In body camera video, bus driver Tim Jones was informed he was pulled over for driving in the far left of three lanes and told that was illegal, even though Jones told deputies road signs only said trucks could not travel there. Georgia Code also says the term “truck” means “any vehicle equipped with more than six wheels, except buses and motorcoaches.”
Jennings has declined interview requests and only commented through press releases.
PLAYER’S DAD SPEAKS UP: Bus stop wouldn’t happen to Notre Dame
“Based on the facts available to me – including several discussions with those impacted at Delaware State University – I’m deeply troubled by what occurred on April 20, 2022,” Jennings wrote. “A traffic stop (for what can charitably be called a minor infraction) led to a slew of sheriff’s deputies searching virtually every bag belonging to student athletes who were returning home from their season finale. I’m told that all the deputies were white, and almost everyone whose bags were searched is black.”
Jennings also wrote, “I know we can count on a thorough vetting and appropriate action.”
Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com and follow on Twitter @kevintresolini. Support local journalism by subscribing to delawareonline.com.
