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D.C. Settles Unreasonable Strip Search, Sexual Battery Allegations for $15,750
On May 11, 2006, the District of Columbia paid $15,750 to settle a lawsuit filed by two prisoners who claimed they were subjected to unreasonable strip searches and sexual battery by guards at the Central Facility in Lorton, Virginia. The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, made claims pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and D.C. Code § 24-211.02.
According to the suit, Plaintiffs Steven Smith and Steven Massey were subjected to a shakedown in June, 2001 in retaliation for filing grievances against guards Willie Truesdale and Oscar Belmo. During the shakedown, Truesdale and Belmo informed other prisoners that Plaintiffs were snitches and publicly strip searched the plaintiffs, making them spread their buttocks in front of other prisoners and squeezing Smith’s penis and testicles, causing him severe pain. The plaintiffs were subjected to additional retaliation on at least ten other occasions.
The plaintiffs settled prior to trial for $15,750. Plaintiffs were represented by John Christopher Belcher of Oxon Hill, Maryland. See: Smith v. District of Columbia, USDC DC, Case No. 1:02-cv-01638-RWR.
According to the suit, Plaintiffs Steven Smith and Steven Massey were subjected to a shakedown in June, 2001 in retaliation for filing grievances against guards Willie Truesdale and Oscar Belmo. During the shakedown, Truesdale and Belmo informed other prisoners that Plaintiffs were snitches and publicly strip searched the plaintiffs, making them spread their buttocks in front of other prisoners and squeezing Smith’s penis and testicles, causing him severe pain. The plaintiffs were subjected to additional retaliation on at least ten other occasions.
The plaintiffs settled prior to trial for $15,750. Plaintiffs were represented by John Christopher Belcher of Oxon Hill, Maryland. See: Smith v. District of Columbia, USDC DC, Case No. 1:02-cv-01638-RWR.
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Related legal case
Smith v. District of Columbia
| Year | 2006 |
|---|---|
| Cite | USDC DC, Case No. 1:02-cv-01638-RWR |
| Level | State Trial Court |
| Conclusion | Settlement |
| Damages | 15,750.00 |
| Injunction Status | N/A |