NEW ORLEANS – A Superdome security guard who was stopped on the way home from work and arrested by two Louisiana state troopers for intoxication, has filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, charging false arrest and seeking damages.
The complaint, filed June 25, stated that “the plaintiff brings this case against defendants pursuant to the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. 1983, and 1988 as well as the Fourth and 14th amendments to the Constitution of the United States.
Corey T. Price says he had completed his night shift as a security guard at the New Orleans Superdome, on June 23, after which he stopped off at a restaurant to eat breakfast. On his way home, he alleges he was stopped by troopers Michael D. Sanders and Ray Martinez of the Louisiana State Police as he passed through Madisonville.
Noticing that Price was wearing a gun, they directed him to lean over the back of the truck, and then disarmed him, the suit says.
Martinez and Sanders noted that Price had no smell of alcohol on his breath but still allegedly required him to submit to standardized field sobriety tests. Ignoring the negative results of the test, the two troopers arrested Price and charged him with driving while intoxicated, the suit says.
Upon arrival at the Louisiana State Police headquarters in that area, Sanders allegedly made Price give a breath sample, telling him that he would lose his driving privileges if he did not submit to the test. Results of the test revealed that Price had no alcohol in his blood, the suit says. Price also was required to give a urine sample, which also turned up negative for alcohol or drugs, the lawsuit states.
Finally, trooper Kenneth LaMulle, reputed to be a drug recognition expert, administered a full battery of tests to determine if Price was legally impaired. However, LaMulle allegedly failed to property administer the tests, and is also named as a defendant.
All this resulted in Price having to spend the day in jail before posting bond. He also says he had to pay to obtain a drug test of his own and retain legal counsel to defend him in court on the DWI charge. He says he has suffered embarrassment, humiliation, and mental anguish, and perhaps the loss of his job as a result of these actions. Plus, he has a public arrest record for the rest of his life.
Price’s attorney, Michael P. Ciaccio of New Orleans, seeks “punitive damages for these violations of Price’s civil rights and reasonable attorney fees, plus all other relief the court deems just and equitable.”