Delaware State University has filed a federal civil rights complaint against the Georgia sheriff's deputies who searched the Women's Lacrosse team's bus last month.
The HBCU filed the complaint with the Civil Rights Division of the US Department of Justice on Wednesday (May 18), requesting the agency investigate the traffic stop the school says was without cause. Delaware State accused the Liberty County, Georgia deputies of racially profiling the bus on April 20 as the student-athletes and coaches traveled back to campus after competing in Florida.
The complaint, written by DSU President Tony Allen and attorney LaKresha Moultrie, says that the bus driver, who is Black, was initially told by deputies that the vehicle was being stopped for improperly traveling in the left lane on I-95.
The driver –– who has been operating buses for more than two decades –– was then instructed to walk to a deputy's car to verify his driver's license and other documents, the complaint states. That's when an additional six deputies arrived along with a narcotics-sniffing dog.
Body camera footage obtained by the University captured one deputy saying, "Bunch of dang schoolgirls on the bus .... probably some weed."
The deputies instructed the driver to open the bus' cargo hold so they can do "their job" of searching it. The drug-sniffing dog then went through the luggage and indicated that there were no illicit drugs in the vicinity. Afterward, two deputies entered the bus in an attempt to "elicit incriminating statements," from the students, the complaint says.
Video of the incident captured by one of the students onboard shows deputies asking the student-athletes to speak up if they had marijuana in their possession.
"We're gonna check y'all's luggage," one of the deputies says. "If there is anything in y'all's luggage, we're probably going to find it. Ok?" the officer said.
No drugs were found and no ticket or citation was issued to the driver after the 45-minute stop.
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