Resolution Rebuking Wayne County Officers for Recent Illegal Search

by Constitution Party of North Carolina State Executive Committee
Adopted on July 16, 2011 in Charlotte, NC

WHEREAS, the Constitution Party of North Carolina believes in the rule of law and that our national and state Constitutions are the supreme laws of the land in their respective boundaries, and

WHEREAS, the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution reads, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized,” and

WHEREAS, on June 9, 2011 Wayne County Sgt. Matt Miller and Deputy Jeremey Hooker stopped Mr. Brandon Cline for speeding on US Highway 70 in Goldsboro, North Carolina, and

WHEREAS, the officers then proceeded to search Mr. Cline’s vehicle in contravention to the Fourth Amendment to the United State Constitution and alleged to have found an “illegal” substance in the vehicle, and

WHEREAS, Mr. Cline was strip-searched beside the highway as affirmed by Captain Richard Lewis of the Wayne County Sheriff Office, and

WHEREAS, Mr. Cline was neither charged with any crime nor any evidence of illegal substances collected from Mr. Cline’s vehicle, and

WHEREAS, Mr. Cline was released without charge, and

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Constitution Party of North Carolina urges the Wayne County Sherriff’s Department to conduct a full investigation into the matter aforementioned and take appropriate action to ensure that the civil liberties and privacy of Wayne County residents are not violated by public officials, and

THEREFORE FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED, that the Constitution Party of North Carolina urges the Wayne County Sherriff’s Department to instruct its officers more thoroughly in their constitutional authority, specifically the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, so that each officer may fully understand and uphold their oath, and

THEREFORE FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED, that the Constitution Party of North Carolina urges the Wayne County Sherriff’s Department to issue a public apology to Mr. Brandon Cline and to the citizens of Wayne County and to cease conducting unlawful and unreasonable searches of its citizens and their private property.

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