Jamison v. McClendon

Clarence Jamison (plaintiff), a Black man, was driving his recently purchased Mercedes convertible through Mississippi when he was pulled over by Nick McClendon, a White police officer. McClendon purportedly stopped Jamison because the temporary tag on Jamison’s car was folded over, obstructing McClendon’s view of it. Upon request, Jamison gave McClendon his driver’s license, insurance, and bill of sale. McClendon ran a background check, which came back clear. McClendon also requested that the National Criminal Information Center conduct a criminal history. While awaiting the results of the criminal history, McClendon asked Jamison five times for permission to search Jamison’s car, falsely told Jamison that an anonymous caller had reported that Jamison was transporting cocaine, and promised Jamison leniency in exchange for consenting to a search. After repeated cajoling, during which McClendon reached his arm into the car, Jamison eventually consented to the search, which damaged the car but did not turn up anything suspicious. McClendon then brought out a drug-sniffing dog to sniff the car. When the dog found nothing, McClendon let Jamison go. The traffic stop lasted a total of one hour and 50 minutes. Jamison brought a lawsuit against McClendon pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983, arguing that the stop violated his Fourth Amendment rights. McClendon moved for summary judgment, arguing that he was entitled to qualified immunity. The district court considered the motion.