BALTIMORE (AP) — An appeals court has ruled the Maryland Transit Administration violated the constitutional rights of passengers when sweeping train cars to ensure fares were paid.
The Daily Records reports the Court of Special Appeals on Thursday said the suspicionless sweep amounted to unconstitutional seizure of passengers, thereby violating the Fourth Amendment. The court said the agency’s show of authority and large police presence during the October 2017 sweep implied to a reasonable person that they couldn’t leave without providing evidence of a paid fare.
The ruling came as part of the decision to overturn a gun possession conviction of a passenger caught in the sweep. The court said the gun found on Kennard Carter after he acknowledged skipping the fare was wrongfully admitted into evidence at his Baltimore trial.
___
Information from: The Daily Record of Baltimore, http://www.thedailyrecord.com
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
