Woman wins damages against trooper in unlawful search

Woman wins damages against trooper in unlawful search

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SALT LAKE CITY — A San Diego woman whose car was searched for drugs during a traffic stop in Utah won a civil lawsuit against a Utah Highway Patrol trooper in a jury verdict handed down Friday in U.S. District Court.

Sherida Felders, 54 at the time, was on her way to a Wyoming-Colorado State college football game in Fort Collins, Colorado, in November 2008 when she was pulled over by the Utah Highway Patrol near Cedar City. Two friends of Felders’ grandson, then-17-year-old Elijah Madyin and Delarryion Hansend, who was 18, were with her in the vehicle.

UHP trooper Brian Bairett made the traffic stop. Bairett said the group’s answers to his questions were inconsistent and warranted suspicion, according to court documents.

"He just asked me out of the blue if I had any meth on me or cocaine or crack in my vehicle,” Felders said in 2009. "I said, 'No.' Then he said, 'You don't mind if I search (your) vehicle?' I said, 'Yes, I do mind. I'm not giving you permission to search my vehicle.'"

Bairett called for help from Iron County sheriff's deputy Jeff Malcom, who arrived on scene with his K-9 officer. The dog searched the vehicle for about two hours, but no drugs were found.

Felders won $15,000 in damages against Bairett in Friday’s decision, which hinged on whether Felders’ 4th Amendment rights were violated by an improper search. But Malcom, also listed as a defendant, was not found liable. Madyin and Hansend were awarded nominal damages of $1 each.

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The jury ruled Duke searched the vehicle at the behest of Bairett, despite a lack of permission or probable cause required for a lawful search. The verdict also found Malcom did not encourage the dog to search Felders’ vehicle and that he was unaware of Bairett’s intention to do so.

Felders' lawsuit originally included an additional claim of racial profiling, but it was later dropped. She, Madyin and Hansend are black.

Bairett and Malcom both requested immunity from individual liability in Felders’ lawsuit, but their motions were denied by the U.S. District Court. Malcom appealed the decision to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, but his request was denied a second time in June. Email: blockhart@deseretnews.com Twitter: @benlockhartnews

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