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Woman Sues Over Officer Strip Search During Traffic Stop

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BALTIMORE (AP) - A woman is suing the state of Maryland, Baltimore police and others for $5 million, alleging her constitutional rights were violated during an illegal strip search.

The Baltimore Sun reports the lawsuit filed Friday accuses former Officer Marcos Paul of threatening and groping her during a traffic stop and pulling off her pants. It says she was pregnant and believed he was going to rape her, and that he followed her home and didn't issue a citation.

It's unclear when and why Paul left the department. The lawsuit cites a 2016 Department of Justice report on the department that found internal affairs didn't investigate more than 60 complaints of illegal strip searches from 2011 to 2016.

Police spokesman Jeremy Silbert says the department doesn't comment on pending litigation.

Don Rush is the News Director and Senior Producer of News and Public Affairs at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.