Jailed in Cass County for 23 days on alleged false drug test, man sues sheriff

A man who says he was unlawfully jailed for 23 days in Cass County because of unfair profiling and botched drug testing is suing the county sheriff, several deputies and the drug testing kit manufacturer.

Saul Maldonado alleges in the lawsuit that as a result of his unlawful arrest and incarceration he lost his job, incurred financial stress and endured being locked in a cell with a violent racist who threatened to kill him.

Maldonado, of Kansas City, Kan., was driving on Interstate 49 on May 10, 2017, when Cass County sheriff’s deputies pulled him over.

A deputy told Maldonado that they stopped him because he “changed lanes abruptly.”

Maldonado, however, thinks he was pulled over because he is Hispanic and the vehicle had Mexican license plates, according to the lawsuit.

He provided the deputies with his Missouri driver’s license and U.S. passport, according to the suit. He had possessed the passport for five years and had seven visa stamps from entering Mexico and one from entering the United States.

Maldonado was also wearing a type of necklace that, according to the suit, one of the deputies associated with drug traffickers.

Despite allegedly having no probable cause to do so, a deputy asked Maldonado for permission to search the vehicle.

Maldonado denied having anything illegal and gave permission.

During the search, deputies found several packages containing powdery substances. Those included baking soda, talc, laundry detergent and soap, the suit says.

Deputies conducted three field tests that all came back positive for cocaine.

Maldonado was handcuffed and taken to jail.

He alleges in the suit that the deputies were not properly trained on how to use and interpret the field testing kits, which are only supposed to be used as presumptive tests until they are confirmed by more accurate laboratory testing.

The suit alleges that the deputies and their supervisors knew that the field testing kits were “unreliable and often inaccurate, producing false positives for narcotics.”

As a result of the presumptive testing, he was charged with felony drug trafficking. He was held in jail, unable to post a $10,000 bond.

After the bond was lowered by a judge, Maldonado was able to post bond on June 2, 2017, after spending 23 days in jail.

Later, the charges against him were dismissed after the Missouri Highway Patrol’s crime lab tested the substance in question and determined that it did not contain cocaine or any other illegal substance.

“The plaintiff (Maldonado) did not so much as receive an apology from the defendants,” according to the suit.

Besides the economic strain the incident caused for Maldonado and his family, he said he has suffered ongoing anxiety, insomnia and paranoia.

The suit claims that Maldonado’s rights under the U.S. and Missouri constitutions were violated.

The lawsuit was initially filed in Cass County Circuit Court, but attorneys for the sheriff’s deputies are seeking to have it transferred to U.S. District Court in Kansas City.

A spokesman for the sheriff’s office said Monday that any comment would have to come from their attorneys.

Those attorneys, as well as the attorneys for Maldonado and the drug kit manufacturer, did not respond Monday to requests seeking comment for this story.