Lawsuit seeks to ban CBP searches on Greyhound Lines
A class action lawsuit is accusing motor coach operator Greyhound Lines of effectively enabling racial profiling by law enforcement.
U.S. citizen, Rocmo Cordova filed a suit, which is seeking class action status in California.
In it she says the Greyhound bus she was on pulled over on a highway so U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers could board and interrogate passengers.
Cordova said she ‘suffered economic injury’ due to a delay in her journey from San Diego to Phoenix but is only seeking to end the practice.
The suit says the country’s largest bus operator is violating state consumer protection laws by allegedly allowing racial profiling.
It seeks a court order banning the practice.
"Greyhound’s policy of voluntarily opening its bus doors to law enforcement officers to intimidate customers based on the color of their skin is not just offensive; it is unlawful. It needs to stop now," said attorney Darren Robbins who is representing Cordova.
Greyhound, which carries about 17 million passengers a year around North America, joins other bus companies and Amtrak in being targeted by civil rights groups and unions for similar practices.
"Civil liberties and civil rights groups, along with members of Congress and even Greyhound’s own drivers, have implored Greyhound to change its policy or practice in recent months. Instead, Greyhound continues to throw its own customers under the bus," the lawsuit stated.
The company responded, saying they have little choice but to allow federal agents on buses.
"CBP officers do not ask permission to board our buses. We do not want to put our drivers’ safety or the safety of our passengers at risk by attempting to stop a federal agent from conducting checks," it said.
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