Recent updates regarding an ongoing Brian Elston Law Federal Case
By BRIAN ELSTON LAW
Brian Elston is in the news regarding a Federal Case where in his clients were wrongfully detained and strip-searched.
Quote from the Asheville Citizen Times:
A federal jury has reached a verdict on the first phase of a Buncombe County man’s civil suit who said sheriff’s deputies violated his rights by strip-searching him in a gas station bathroom.
The jury returned a verdict March 23, the second day of deliberation, saying the actions of one deputy, Jeff May, in the 2018 strip search of Marcus Hyatt were not “reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.”
On February 23, 2021 the Asheville Citizen Times covered the news:
The federal case of a Buncombe County man who was handcuffed, strip searched in a gas station bathroom and held for hours before being released is set for a March 8 jury trial.
The movement toward a civil trial for Marcus Hyatt and his girlfriend Ashley Barrett, who said she was also illegally detained in 2018, comes after a Feb. 12, order by U.S. District Court Judge Martin Reidinger.
The full article can be found here, but may require subscription to read:
On March 17, 2021 the Asheville Citizen Times wrote an article on the impending trial:
Race, a drug dog, body cam footage and the jury’s take on who is filling in the blanks honestly during gaps in video will steer the outcome of a federal civil rights case brought by a Buncombe County man who said sheriff’s deputies violated his rights in a 2018 traffic stop.
The issues loomed large in a jury trial that started March 17 for Marcus Hyatt, a Black man who says white deputies pulled him and his cousin, Brandon Pickens, over without good reason on Jan. 20, 2018. They detained and handcuffed them, then strip searched them in a gas station bathroom before letting them go after three and a half hours.
The full article can be found here, but may require subscription to read:
This case is ongoing with more news to follow.
If you feel you’ve been wrongfully accused or detained, contact Brian Elston Law.