A “Gang Sweep” at a High School Leads to Class Action

A class action lawsuit has been filed by the American Civil Liberties Union after a “gang sweep” was conducted at West High School in Salt Lake City.  During the sweep, up to 40 students of color were detained, questioned, and falsely accused of being gang members.

The ACLU filed the complaint in U.S. Federal court against the Salt Lake City police department, the cities of West Jordan and West Valley, the Unified Police Department’s Metro Gang Unit, Salt Lake County, and school district officials.  The lawsuit alleges violations of state and federal constitutional rights.

The complaint states that during the sweep, police officers interrogated students denied their requests to call their parents or to leave the interrogation room.

The ACLU is representing a fourteen year old, Kaleb Winston, who was among one of the students questioned.  Winston says that he was approached by two plain clothes officers who took him to a nearby room and accused him of vandalism and tagging.  Winston became upset about the questioning, but he was not allowed to leave the room.  The officers questioned him about his “graffiti patterned” backpack and sketches that the officers said resemble gang insignia. Although Winston denied any gang affiliation, the officers ignored him and accused him of tagging sites around the school.  They also faked booking Winston into jail and told him that a file would be kept on him.

The police department says that the school asked for help from the gang unit because of an increase in graffiti and gang attire at the campus.  The goal, according to a spokesman, was to steer students in the right direction.

The complaint also alleges that Winston’s mother complained to the police over the treatment of her son.  According to her, the police told her that the purpose of the raid was to address a problem with Mexicans, and that she “had her head up her ass” if she did not realize that her son was tagging.  Winston did well in school and had no juvenile record.

If you or a loved one has been subjected to discrimination or harassment based on race, please contact Khorrami, LLP for a confidential evaluation of your rights.