Pubdate: Sun, 13 May 2001
Source: Tulsa World (OK)
Copyright: 2001 World Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.tulsaworld.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/463
Author: Ziva Branstetter

TWO-HOUR SEARCH YIELDED NOTHING, ACLU SUIT SAYS

But the search caused $1,089.21 in damage to the car, the suit
says.

A lawsuit filed against the Oklahoma Highway Patrol alleging racial
profiling accuses troopers of stopping a black Army sergeant and his
son for no reason and conducting a two-hour search of their car, which
turned up nothing.

The suit states Rossano Gerald and his son, Gregory, were driving
through Oklahoma on their way to a family reunion Aug. 13, 1998. At
the time, Gerald, a decorated veteran of Operation Desert Storm, was
stationed in South Korea.

Gerald was driving his red Nissan 300ZX on Interstate 40 and had just
crossed from Arkansas to Oklahoma when he was stopped by a Roland City
Police Department officer. The officer gave him a verbal warning for
following too closely and allowed him to leave. Minutes later, he was
pulled over on I-40 a second time by the OHP and given a warning
ticket, the suit states.

The suit alleges that the trooper falsely claimed Rossano had failed
to signal when he changed lanes. It states Trooper Branson Perry
questioned him at length about where he was going and whether he had
any drugs in his car. Another trooper searched his then-12-year-old
son and questioned the boy about weapons.

Though Gerald declined to consent to a search of his car, the troopers
brought a K-9 unit to conduct a search, stating Oklahoma law allowed
such searches without consent. When Gerald asked to observe the
search, the suit states that troopers warned the two that the dog
might bite and not to get too close.

"Gregory was nervous, crying and hyperventilating," the lawsuit
states.

The dog searched the car's exterior but failed to "alert . . . despite
Trooper #2 repeatedly patting certain areas of the car and yanking the
dog's collar when he failed to alert," the suit states.

"Although the dog did not `alert,' upon information and belief,
Trooper #2, after patting the wheel well, claimed the dog had alerted,
thus providing him a basis for conducting a full-scale search."

"Despite the afternoon heat . . . Trooper Perry turned off the car's
air conditioner and turned on the heater or the car's fan, leaving SFC
Gerald and Gregory to swelter in the 90-degree plus Oklahoma heat,"
the lawsuit states.

During the search, troopers accused Gerald of having a "secret
compartment in his car which contained drug residue. In reality, the
compartment . . . was a feature (a footrest) of the car."

"Trooper Perry then handcuffed SFC Gerald, said the dog would bite him
if he tried to escape, manhandled him into his patrol car and strapped
him in. . . . Trooper Perry appeared to turn off the on-board video
camera and remove the tape," the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit states the search caused $1,089.21 in damage to the
car.

After the search, "Trooper #2 stated that SFC Gerald was `behaving
himself now.' When SFC Gerald complained that his car and his baggage
were a mess, Trooper Perry stated `We ain't good at repacking.' "
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