A federal judge in Pennsylvania recently approved a class action settlement that ended the city of Chester Police Department's policy of mandatory strip searches for persons placed in holding cells.

Plaintiffs in the case alleged that the department's policy of strip searching anyone placed in a holding cell, including those arrested for traffic infractions and failures to pay fines, violated the Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure, as well as negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress.