Court Rules Kansas Highway Patrol Has Been Violating Motorists’ Constitutional Rights
A federal appeals court has ruled that the Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP) violated motorists’ rights by targeting out-of-state motorists. The court stated KHP has been disproportionately stopping drivers with out-of-state license plates.
The 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals upheld a Kansas district court ruling in the case of Shaw v. Jones. The Kansas Highway Patrol must now revise trooper training on the targeting of motorists to ensure those procedures comply with the Fourth Amendment.
According to the ACLU, expert statistical analysis found that out-of-state drivers accounted for only about 35 percent of drivers on the road, but were 77 percent of KHP traffic stops. They also accounted for 90 percent of KHP’s canine searches.
“Despite repeated warnings from the Tenth Circuit, the Kansas Highway Patrol has continued to unconstitutionally target out-of-state drivers for suspicionless roadside detentions,” said Brian Hauss, Deputy Director of the ACLU Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project. “The court made clear today that it has run out of patience. KHP needs to bring its war on drivers to an end and start complying with the Fourth Amendment.”
What is the ‘Kansas Two-Step’ and how does it relate to the lawsuit?
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, however, overturned the Kansas district court’s injunction against KHP troopers using a roadside tactic known as the “Kansas Two-Step.” According to the ACLU, the so-called “Kansas Two-Step” is a tactic used by Kansas Highway Patrol troopers.
It involves the trooper completing a traffic stop, then re-engaging the driver in conversation to initiate a consensual interaction for additional questioning. The objective of the tactic is to develop reasonable suspicion to extend the driver’s detention, search the car, or call a drug-sniffing dog to check the car for contraband.
“This circuit has never held that this practice has violated a driver’s constitutional rights and has repeatedly upheld that practice in specific cases,” the ruling read. As a result of the injunction being overturned, KHP will not have to pay $2.3 million in attorney fees and other costs to the plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
The KHP did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the court’s decisions. If they do, we will update this story.
