ATLANTA — A recent decision by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has drawn attention to allegations of racial profiling involving the Clayton County Police Department’s program at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. The court ruled that there are sufficient grounds to question the constitutionality of searches conducted on jet bridges, particularly focusing on the treatment of Black passengers.
Barry Friedman, the attorney representing plaintiffs André and Clayton English, expressed eagerness to uncover more details regarding the alleged unconstitutional practices. The case centers on incidents in which both men were allegedly stopped and questioned by police officers in 2020 and 2021 while boarding Delta flights. Representatives from Clayton County did not respond immediately to inquiries related to the ongoing case.
The county’s defense emphasizes that interactions with the men were consensual and voluntary. They argue that both André and English were free to board their flights without providing identification or boarding passes. However, the appeals court countered this assertion, noting that officers blocked their paths and retained their personal belongings during the questioning. The court criticized the lack of clarity provided to the passengers regarding the voluntary nature of their encounters with police.
Both men were eventually allowed to board their flights after enduring several minutes of questioning. English reported that officers also searched his carry-on luggage during this incident. The entertainers have alleged that they were targeted as part of a broader drug interdiction program, which statistics show disproportionately affected Black passengers. In fact, data reveals that 56% of individuals stopped by Clayton County officers in a given period were Black, despite Black travelers constituting only about 8% of those using the airport for domestic flights.
The appeals court further noted that, while there was no evidence to suggest André and English were suspected of carrying illegal substances, the plaintiffs had not furnished enough evidence to prove discriminatory intent behind the officers’ selections. The court stated that André’s observation of the absence of other Black passengers in his boarding group did not sufficiently establish that the officers acted with racial motivation.
Support for André and English has come from several high-profile Black celebrities, including filmmaker Tyler Perry, who advocated for the appeals court to take a renewed look at their case. The county acknowledged that its involvement in the controversial search program had ceased in June 2024.
Legal representatives for the plaintiffs pointed out that their clients were among 402 passengers subjected to stops and searches during a specific eight-month timeframe. They stressed the improbability of the racial composition of those stopped occurring by chance and calculated the odds of such a breakdown as being less than one in one hundred trillion.
As the legal proceedings continue, the outcome may set a precedent regarding law enforcement practices concerning racial profiling and the rights of passengers in airport settings.
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