Colorado § 16-3-405 - Strip searches - when authorized or prohibited.

§ 16-3-405. Strip searches - when authorized or prohibited.

(1) No person arrested for a traffic or a petty offense shall be strip searched, prior to arraignment, unless there is reasonable belief that the individual is concealing a weapon or a controlled substance or that the individual, upon identification, is a parolee or an offender serving a sentence in any correctional facility in the state or that the individual is arrested for driving while under the influence of drugs.

(2) As used in this section, "strip search" means having an arrested person remove or arrange some or all of his or her clothing so as to permit a visual inspection of the genitals, buttocks, anus, or female breasts of such person.

(3) Any strip search that is conducted shall be performed by a person of the same sex as the arrested person and on premises where the search cannot be observed by persons not physically conducting the search.

(4) Every peace officer or employee of a police department or sheriff's department conducting a strip search shall obtain the written permission of the police commander or an agent thereof or a sheriff or an agent thereof designated for the purposes of authorizing a strip search in accordance with this section.

(5) No search of any body cavity other than the mouth shall be conducted without the written permission of the police commander or an agent thereof or a sheriff or an agent thereof authorizing a body cavity search. The search must be performed under sanitary conditions and conducted by a licensed physician or nurse.

(6) Any peace officer or employee of a police department or a sheriff's department who knowingly or intentionally fails to comply with any provision of this section commits second degree official misconduct, as defined in section 18-8-405, C.R.S. Nothing contained in this section shall preclude prosecution of a peace officer or employee of a police department or sheriff's department under any other provision of the law.

(7) Nothing in this section shall be construed as limiting the statutory or common-law rights of any person for the purposes of any civil action or injunctive relief.

(8) The provisions of subsections (1) to (6) of this section shall not apply when, following arraignment and pursuant to a court order, the person is taken into custody by or remanded to a sheriff or a correctional facility.

Source: L. 82: Entire section added, p. 305, § 1, effective April 5.

Cross references: For definition of "controlled substance", see § 12-280-402 (1); for "driving under the influence" of any drug, see § 42-4-1301.