Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §200-G, sub-§2, ķA, as enacted by PL 1983, c. 789, §1, is amended to read:

A. No A person arrested for a Class D or E crime, or a traffic violation or a violation of a city, county or town ordinance which that is punishable by no more than 30 days in jail, may not be subjected to a strip search or body cavity search, unless there is a reasonable cause to believe, suspicion on the part of the law enforcement officer authorizing the search, that the individual is concealing a weapon, contraband or evidence of a crime, or unless the arrestee is about to come into contact with the inmate population of a detention facility.

SUMMARY

This bill seeks to conform the law on strip searches to developments in case law since the initial enactment of this statute. Before a law enforcement officer authorizes a strip or body cavity search of any person arrested for a Class D or E crime or a traffic violation not punishable by more than 30 days in jail, that officer must have, at a minimum, a reasonable suspicion that the person is concealing a weapon, contraband or evidence of a crime. The fact that the person is about to come into contact with the inmate population of a detention facility is no longer justification for dispensing with the reasonable suspicion requirement for persons arrested for minor crimes, traffic violations and ordinance violations.