BPD ADJUSTS STRIP-SEARCH REGULATIONS

Bakersfield Police Chief Eric Matlock has ordered a change in department
policies concerning strip searches in the field, spurred by media attention
to the practice after a complaint was filed against the department.

Matlock sent a memorandum to all the department's sworn officers announcing
the change Friday.

The new policy requires officers to first get permission from a supervisor
before performing a strip search to find contraband such as drugs.

No prior authorization is needed if officers have probable cause to believe
a suspect is concealing a weapon, but they must contact a supervisor as
soon as possible.

The policy also states officers must consider a suspect's privacy when
deciding to conduct the search in the field or in a more private area such
as a police station, hospital or jail.

The policy will be in place until the department's planning, research and
training staff finish a comprehensive policy on the procedure.

The new policy comes on the heels of a Californian article detailing a
complaint filed against the department by Bakersfield residents Tony
Eddington, 20 and Robert Johnson, 25.

Both men say they were strip searched in the back of a Bakersfield police
car on the night of March 23 after being pulled over on Ming Avenue, even
though earlier searches of their persons and their car yielded no evidence
of contraband.

Traffic violations were the only charges filed in the case.

Eddington is on probation and Johnson is on parole. Both men have prior
convictions on drug charges.

Matlock said he is constrained in what he can say because of the internal
investigation prompted by the complaint. That makes the case a personnel
matter, which he is forbidden by law to discuss.

Matlock said police department officials may not agree with all the
allegations in the complaint, but he said they recognize the need for a
written policy.

"The department is conducting research to ensure the policy conforms with
the legal opinions and case law that cover this procedure," he said.

Matlock said the department will also record the number of field strip
searches performed, even though he said the procedure is rarely done in the
field.

Even though the complaint is still under investigation, Matlock said he
disputes parts of the men's stories.

He said both Eddington and Johnson are gang members who have had numerous
contacts with the police.

"We make thousands of contacts with people every year, but very few of them
end up in complaints," Matlock said.

Both Johnson and Eddington deny they are gang members. They both have full
time jobs at Bakersfield's Superior Tire Company.

"Even if we were, they still need probable cause to search us," Eddington
said. "Even if you're on probation, they need to have some kind of reason
to go as far as they did."

Both men have questioned whether their race played a part in the decision
to stop and search them.

Johnson is black and Eddington said he is half-black and half-Hispanic.

"This has nothing to do with race whatsoever," said Matlock, who is also
black. The chief said the men's probation and parole terms allow officers
to search them on the street without the need for probable cause.