Lawsuit Claims Salem County Denied Detainees' Constitutional Rights

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Four detainees are the plaintiffs in a proposed class action against the County of Salem and claim the Salem County Correctional Facility denied them of their constitutional rights. The suit alleges that the plaintiffs and other detainees were illegally strip searched in a public setting, classified or misclassified as suicidal, and provided clothing that did not properly cover them. According to the complaint, the plaintiffs, whose crimes were “non-indictable,” were unlawfully strip searched before being admitted into the general population. They were then allegedly classified as suicidal “for no apparent reason.” As a result, they were given clothing with worn Velcro that failed to properly close, and subjected to additional strip searches two or three times a day, the suit says. A female plaintiff claims she was strip searched in her cell where other detainees and male correctional officers could view her exposed body through a glass window, while a camera in her cell transmitted images of the searches to other parts of the facility.

The complaint claims violations of the New Jersey Constitution and amendments of the United States Constitution.