Above video: The Liberty County Sheriff’s Office comments on the drug searchThe Delaware State University president says he has reached out to the state’s governor and attorney general’s office following a traffic stop in Georgia involving DSU’s girls’ lacrosse team.The traffic stop took place on April 20 on I-95 in Liberty County as the team was traveling home from a game in Florida.Now the team is saying they were targets of racial profiling, as most of the players and coaches are black.”They, like me, are incensed,” wrote DSU President Tony Allen in a letter sent to the university community. “We have also reached out to Georgia Law Enforcement and are exploring options for recourse – legal and otherwise – available to our student-athletes, our coaches, and the university.”Watch bodycam video of the incident below:TRENDING STORIESGeorgia woman wins Final Jeopardy thanks to question about Atlanta airportSavannah police arrest 59-year-old man for murder after deadly shooting of family memberHilton Head restaurant rewarding kids for picking up litter at the beach with free kids mealThe bus driver, identified as Tim Jones, was initially told by a Liberty County sheriff’s deputy that he was improperly traveling in the left lane. Jones said he thought the only lane restriction was for trucks, per signs in the area, but the deputy said the team’s bus was a commercial vehicle and fell under the same regulations.Within moments, a K-9 is on scene conducting a clean air sniff, which alerts authorities to luggage stored under the bus.A representative from the sheriff’s office told WPVI in an email, “This alert does not indicate there are drugs on the bus, just that the odor is present.””After that, they came on the bus and they told us they were going to be checking through our luggage,” sophomore lacrosse player Sydney Anderson told WPVI. “They didn’t ask us, they told us.””If there is something in there that’s questionable, please tell me now,” one of the deputies says in the bodycam video. “Because if we find it, guess what? We’re not gonna be able to help you.”The bodycam video shows deputies rummaging through the players’ bags for several minutes. At one point, a deputy opens a wrapped gift given to a player by her aunt because the player didn’t know what it was.Ultimately, deputies find nothing illegal.Liberty County Sheriff’s Office Major Bill Kirkendall said an internal affairs investigation is underway to determine if the deputies acted appropriately.
LIBERTY COUNTY, Ga. —
Above video: The Liberty County Sheriff’s Office comments on the drug search
The Delaware State University president says he has reached out to the state’s governor and attorney general’s office following a traffic stop in Georgia involving DSU’s girls’ lacrosse team.
The traffic stop took place on April 20 on I-95 in Liberty County as the team was traveling home from a game in Florida.
Now the team is saying they were targets of racial profiling, as most of the players and coaches are black.
“They, like me, are incensed,” wrote DSU President Tony Allen in a letter sent to the university community. “We have also reached out to Georgia Law Enforcement and are exploring options for recourse – legal and otherwise – available to our student-athletes, our coaches, and the university.”
Watch bodycam video of the incident below:
TRENDING STORIES
The bus driver, identified as Tim Jones, was initially told by a Liberty County sheriff’s deputy that he was improperly traveling in the left lane. Jones said he thought the only lane restriction was for trucks, per signs in the area, but the deputy said the team’s bus was a commercial vehicle and fell under the same regulations.
Within moments, a K-9 is on scene conducting a clean air sniff, which alerts authorities to luggage stored under the bus.
A representative from the sheriff’s office told WPVI in an email, “This alert does not indicate there are drugs on the bus, just that the odor is present.”
“After that, they came on the bus and they told us they were going to be checking through our luggage,” sophomore lacrosse player Sydney Anderson told WPVI. “They didn’t ask us, they told us.”
“If there is something in there that’s questionable, please tell me now,” one of the deputies says in the bodycam video. “Because if we find it, guess what? We’re not gonna be able to help you.”
The bodycam video shows deputies rummaging through the players’ bags for several minutes. At one point, a deputy opens a wrapped gift given to a player by her aunt because the player didn’t know what it was.
Ultimately, deputies find nothing illegal.
Liberty County Sheriff’s Office Major Bill Kirkendall said an internal affairs investigation is underway to determine if the deputies acted appropriately.
