‘Humiliating’ drug search by Georgia cops was racially motivated, lacrosse team says
This story was updated on May 11 at 8:10 a.m. ET to include statements from the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office.
A traffic stop of a college women’s lacrosse team turned into what students called a “humiliating” drug search by Georgia police that the team believes was racially motivated.
The president of Delaware State University, one of the country’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU), wrote that he is “incensed” over the April 20 incident in a letter to the school community made public on May 9. It occurred as the team was heading home on a contracted bus after a game in Florida.
Police “stopped the team under the pretext of a minor traffic violation,” university President Tony Allen wrote. Then, “the belongings of the student-athletes, including suitcases in the luggage racks beneath the bus, were searched by police and drug-sniffing dogs. ...
“To be clear, nothing illegal was discovered in this search, and all of our coaches and student-athletes comported themselves with dignity throughout a trying and humiliating process.”
The team was pulled over on I-95 by officers from the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Head coach Pamella Jenkins told the outlet that she believes the athletes were searched for drugs because they are mostly Black.
“(The deputy) quickly went to marijuana, which stereotypically is unfortunately associated with African Americans. That’s the first thing that he went to,” Jenkins said.
The sheriff’s office declined a request for comment from McClatchy News and said a news conference will be held on the matter.
Officers said they pulled over the bus, operated by a driver who is Black, because it was “not permitted to drive in the left lane,” a lacrosse player on the team, sophomore Sydney Anderson, wrote for The Hornet Newspaper, the university’s paper, published on May 4.
Police told the team “that they would be checking their luggage for any possible narcotics, such as marijuana, heroin ... and ketamine,” Anderson wrote.
In a statement released around 5:20 p.m. ET on May 10, Liberty County Sheriff William Bowman said “at the time, or even the weeks following, we were not aware that this stop was received as racial profiling.”
He added that based on the information he has, he does not believe racial profiling occurred and that “the stop was legal.”
“As a veteran, former Georgia State Trooper, and sheriff of this department, I do not exercise racial profiling, allow racial profiling, or encourage racial profiling.”
Video of the incident
Allen said that the officers attempted “to intimidate our student-athletes into confessing to possession of drugs and/or drug paraphernalia,” according to a YouTube video, filmed and shared by Anderson, that captured part of the incident.
In the video, titled “Racism in the South,” one officer is heard firmly telling the team that “if there is anything in y’all’s luggage, we’re probably gonna find it. I’m not looking for a little marijuana, but I’m pretty sure you guys’ chaperones will probably be disappointed in you if we find it.”
“If there is something in there that is questionable, please tell me now because if we find it, guess what, we’re not gonna be able to help,” the officer added while explaining marijuana is still illegal in Georgia.
The sheriff’s office told WPVI that the incident was internally investigated and said the drug search was warranted. Bowman told the outlet that police dogs sniffed the air and “alerted (officers) to the luggage” on the bus.
Meanwhile, Allen said that the school has been investigating the matter and that state officials, including the governor, have been notified about it.
Delaware Gov. John Carney called the video “upsetting, concerning, and disappointing,” in a statement provided to McClatchy News.
“Moments like these should be relegated to part of our country’s complicated history, but they continue to occur with sad regularity in communities across our country. It’s especially hard when it impacts our own community. ...
“We will do everything we can to assist the University with learning more about the incident and any appropriate next steps,” Carney added. “I’m proud of our students for handling the experience with remarkable composure, though I’m sorry they were made to go through it at all.”
Allen concluded his letter by writing “we will never be bullied into believing anything other than what we are— Americans, learners, teachers, builders—useful and honorable people ready to soar. ...
“Again, I say, ‘We shall not be moved.’”
The entire statement from Bowman is below:
This story was originally published May 10, 2022 at 3:32 PM with the headline "‘Humiliating’ drug search by Georgia cops was racially motivated, lacrosse team says."
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