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ACLU sues Moreno Valley on behalf of African-American barbers after raids
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ACLU sues Moreno Valley on behalf of African-American barbers after raids
ACLU sues Moreno Valley on behalf of African-American barbers after raids
The American Civil Liberties Union is suing the city of Moreno Valley on behalf of a group of African-American barbers. They're upset about raids on barbershops last year. KPCC's Steven Cuevas has details.
Steven Cuevas: City and state inspectors – accompanied by police – swept through 16 Moreno Valley barbershops in a pair of raids last April. The city says it was checking to see if the businesses were operating without the proper licenses – or if they employed barbers who weren't licensed. Police also confiscated a couple of handguns and some marijuana.
Five of the six barbershops targeted in the first raid were black-owned. Some of the black barbershop owners say they didn't have a problem with the business license checks. Their beef is with the way police carried out the raids.
Peter Bebring: They rushed in blocking entrances and exits, and in general, conducted searches that were far more intrusive than anything reasonably necessary to determine if the shops were in compliance with health and business regulations.
Cuevas: ACLU attorney Peter Bebring represents the barbershops.
Bebring: The ACLU filed suit to seek a remedy for violations of both the California and United States constitution guarantees against unreasonable searches, and racial discrimination. The officers at no time claimed to have a warrant or ever produced a warrant.
Cuevas: The lawsuit aims to limit the role local law enforcement plays in business inspections. It also seeks an unspecified amount of money in damages. City officials in Moreno Valley haven't commented on the lawsuit.
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Last year, Moreno Valley City Councilman Bill Batey – who's black – said the sweeps were not racially motivated. He said they were an attempt to ensure businesses in the city were up to code and operating lawfully.
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