Filed Date: July 20, 1982
Closed Date: Aug. 5, 1985
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In the early 1980s, two female arrestees, Paulette Stewart and Barbara Wilkerson, filed separate lawsuits in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, challenging the blanket strip search policy of the Lubbock County Sheriff's Department. Each plaintiff was arrested for a minor crime (one for public intoxication, the other for a bad check charge) and then strip searched at the Lubbock County Jail pursuant to the Sheriff's policy of strip searching all arrestees, regardless of the crime charged or whether there was any suspicion that the individual possessed weapons or contraband. Both plaintiffs sought monetary damages and injunctive relief, and Wilkerson also sought class certification.
The District Court (Judge Halbert O. Woodward) awarded Wilkerson $15,000 in monetary damages and awarded Stewart nominal damages of $1.00. The District Court also entered a temporary and permanent injunction in the Stewart case, enjoining strip searches under the Lubbock County Sheriff's blanket strip search policy. Stewart's attorneys then moved for attorneys' fees. When the Sheriff failed to respond to the motion, the Court granted it and awarded fees.
The Sheriff appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that: (1) in both cases, the District Court committed a legal error in ruling that the County's strip search policy was unconstitutional; and (2) in the Stewart case, the District Court further abused its discretion in refusing to set aside the default judgment for attorney's fees. The cases were consolidated on appeal, and the Fifth Circuit affirmed the judgments in both cases. Stewart v. Lubbock County, Texas 767 F.2d 153 (5th Cir. 1985).
The Sheriff subsequently requested but was denied a writ of certiorari from the United States Supreme Court. Lubbock County, Tex. v. Stewart, 475 U.S. 1066, 106 S.Ct. 1378, 89 L.Ed.2d 604 (U.S. 1986).
We have no further information on this case.
Summary Authors
Dan Dalton (2/12/2008)
Hill, Robert Madden (Texas)
Hinojosa, Ricardo H. (Texas)
Hall, Mark C. (Texas)
Darnell, Jim Bob (Texas)
Fletcher, Kay P. (Texas)
Last updated May 1, 2024, 3:10 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Texas
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: July 20, 1982
Closing Date: Aug. 5, 1985
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Women charged with minor offenses and strip searched at the Lubbock County Jail pursuant to a blanket search policy, without any reasonable suspicion that they possessed weapons or contraband.
Plaintiff Type(s):
Public Interest Lawyer: No
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Unknown
Defendants
Sheriff of Lubbock County (Lubbock), County
Lubbock County, Texas (Lubbock), County
Facility Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Unreasonable search and seizure
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Issues
General/Misc.:
Affected Sex/Gender(s):
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions: