Man was strip-searched by Raleigh police. The city settled with him for $117,000.
It was around 11 p.m. and Charles Frails was riding in the front of his friend’s car on the way to a Raleigh pool hall in April 2014. Two Raleigh police officers pulled the men over, accusing them of speeding and making an illegal turn, which Frails said wasn’t true, according to a federal civil rights lawsuit he filed in 2015.
The city spent $91,500 fighting the allegations, The News & Observer previously reported. But in 2016 it agreed to pay Frails $117,000 to end the case — one example of accusations of improper searches in settled complaints against police compiled by The News & Observer.
Officer Dennis Riley, who was joined by Officer Eric Vigeant, said he pulled the car over due to traffic violations and because its license plate was partially covered, according to court documents. Frails said that wasn’t the case.
In court filings, Riley contended that he believed the car was speeding, and that he witnessed it make an illegal turn. So he turned on his cruiser’s blue lights to stop it.
After the driver turned into a McDonald’s parking lot on Capital Boulevard, police ordered Frails and the driver out of the car.
Frails’ cousin was in a separate car, also heading to the pool hall. He pulled into the parking lot too, and hit record on his phone.
Even though the driver denied police permission to search the vehicle, the officers did so once while waiting for a K-9 dog, the lawsuit states. They searched Frails and his companion too and found marijuana in the companion’s sock, the lawsuit says. The companion was arrested.
After taking the men’s identification, Riley reviewed Frails’ criminal record, which included multiple pending charges against him in Wilson County including misdemeanor possession of a prescription drug and felony possession of a schedule I controlled substance, city attorneys wrote in court documents. Riley searched the car and found rolling papers and marijuana residue, the documents state.
Police drove the men to a community center in a strip mall used by police, the lawsuit states. Frails and the driver were scared and asked the officer to take them to the jail instead because they didn’t feel safe, the lawsuit states.
Instead officers had Frails take off his clothes inside the center and made him bend over and inspected his genitals and anus, the lawsuit states. They allegedly spoke to Frails in a harsh and demeaning manner.
After Frails got dressed, they left Frails at the strip mall sometime after midnight without any means of transportation, the lawsuit states.
All criminal charges against the driver were dropped. Frails was never charged with anything, the lawsuit states.
Officers left Frails at the shopping center after he told officers someone would come and pick him up, Riley contended in court documents.
After filing a complaint with Raleigh police, Frails received a letter from police saying that the evidence indicates that the officers violated departmental rules related to searches and seizures and stops and frisks, the lawsuit states.
Virginia Bridges covers criminal justice in the Triangle and across North Carolina for The News & Observer. Her work is produced with financial support from the nonprofit The Just Trust. The N&O maintains full editorial control of its journalism.
