You are a Class Member (part of this case) if you were strip searched in a group, outside in the bus garage, while entering or returning to the Lynwood Jail (“CRDF”). The case covers such searches for the period March 5, 2008 to January 31, 2015. Only LASD records will be used to decide who is a Class Member.

This case was filed in United States District Court. The Judge is United States District Court Judge Stephen Wilson. Judge Wilson has decided that the settlement is fair to Class Members.

The Court sent the notice to everyone who may qualify as a Class Member. If you are a Class Member, the settlement will affect your rights. You have a right to know about the settlement and your choices.

The Court has approved a team of lawyers from McLane, Bednarski & Litt (called “Class Counsel”) to collectively represent you. These lawyers have been working on this case since 2010. You don’t have to pay your own money for the work these attorneys have done. Instead, the lawyers have asked to be paid from the total settlement fund. You can hire your own lawyer to advise you if you want but don’t need to. If you need to contact Class Counsel, you may do so by phone at: (626) 844-7660. 

The settlement provides for payment of a total of $53 million dollars. Here’s how the money will be divided:

1. $38,477,435.25 will be divided among Class Members who filed claims.
2. The attorneys will be paid fees not to exceed one-third (33.33%) of the total fund, plus case expenses. The Court may pay the attorneys less than 1/3 but not more. The Court has granted a 25% fee award of $13,250,000.
3. Payment of $10,000 to each of the 9 class representatives for their role in starting and supporting the case.
4. Additional payments to a court appointed class administrator to notify the class and distribute the money.

Each Class Member who submitted a claim will receive a share of the settlement based on the total number of claimants (people who submitted claims). The money is divided among the claimants based on several things: the number of searches each person had, the weather when the search happened, and how bad the lack of privacy was during the search (the earlier searches were generally worse). Each person received a certain number of points based on these issues, and the settlement is divided based on each person’s points.

The claim filing deadline was June 4, 2020, and the final approval hearing took place on July 20, 2020. After the hearing, the Court decided to approve any additional completed claims that had been filed prior to the final approval hearing. On September 13, 2021 the Court approved payment to Class Members who submitted late claims through September 9, 2021. No further late claims will be approved. If you did not file a claim before the deadline, you will get no points and no money. It is divided only among those who filed on time.

No Class Member who filed a valid claim will receive less than $200 (for one search under the least bad conditions). Persons with the highest number of searches – up to 50 will count for points – will likely receive thousands of dollars.

A federal district court granted final approval to the settlement in this case on August 11, 2020. A former Class Member, who had opted out, appealed the settlement. After losing two appeals before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, she filed a petition for review by the U.S. Supreme Court. The petition for review was denied on October 4, 2021.

The Settlement has been finally approved and became effective on November 3, 2021. The Settlement Administrator sent the first round of Class Member settlement checks on January 21, 2022, and the second round of checks on July 7, 2023. Counsel estimates that the third round of payments will be issued in late 2024, however, an exact payment date has not been determined at this time. The three rounds of payments are because, under the settlement, the County makes three equal payments, in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Updates will be posted to the homepage of this website. Please continue to monitor the website for updates.

Benefit payments will be mailed by check to the most recent address on file. Please remember to notify the Settlement Administrator of any address updates for future payments. See FAQ 17.

Address updates can be emailed or mailed to the Settlement Administrator. You may email your request to info@LynwoodStripSearch.com or you may complete the form on the Contact Us page. All address update requests require a minimum of two of the following verification points: previous address, date of birth, and/or last four digits of your social security number. Please also include any aliases you may have used.

The Court decided how much they will be paid. The lawyers were permitted to ask the Court for a fee of up to one-third (33.33%) of the total available class fund (one-third of 53 million), plus case expenses, which could be up to approximately $18,000,000. Plaintiffs’ counsel requested the full 1/3. The Court has granted a 25% fee award of $13,250,000. The Court also granted Class Counsel $379,839.79 in costs. 

You will not personally pay any attorneys’ fees that the court awarded to the attorneys.

You had the right to stay as a Class Member and object to all or part of the Settlement. The deadline to object to the Settlement was June 4, 2020 and has passed.

You had the right to exclude yourself from the Class and give up the right to your share of the Settlement Amount. The deadline to exclude yourself was June 4, 2020 and has passed.

Objecting is telling the Court that you do not like something about the settlement but staying in the case. Excluding yourself or “opting out” is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the case. If you excluded yourself, you could not object because you are no longer part of the case, and it doesn’t affect you.

If you did nothing, you will receive no money from the settlement and you gave up your rights against the County. 

People who submitted claims, objected or did nothing, gave up their right to sue the LASD (or its employees) for claims covered by this case. This means that you will not be able to sue the LASD for strip searches covered by the lawsuit that occurred when entering or returning to CRDF between March 5, 2008 and January 31, 2015. You are not giving up claims against the LASD unrelated to this case.

People who excluded themselves (“opted out”) did not give up claims because they are no longer part of the case.

The Settlement has been finally approved and became effective on November 3, 2021. The Settlement Administrator sent the first round of Class Member settlement checks on January 21, 2022, and the second round of checks on July 7, 2023. Counsel estimates that the third round of payments will be issued in late 2024, however, an exact payment date has not been determined at this time. The three rounds of payment are because, under the settlement, the County makes three equal payments, in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Updates will be posted to the homepage of this website. Please continue to monitor the website for updates.

A federal district court granted final approval to the Settlement in this case on August 11, 2020. A former Class Member, who had opted out, appealed the Settlement. After losing two appeals before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, she filed a petition for review by the U.S. Supreme Court. The petition for review was denied on October 4, 2021. On September 13, 2021 the Court approved payment to Class Members who submitted late claims through September 9, 2021. No further late claims will be approved. 

The Settlement has been finally approved and became effective on November 3, 2021. The Settlement Administrator sent the first round of Class Member settlement checks on January 21, 2022, and the second round of checks on July 7, 2023. Counsel estimates that the third round of payments will be issued in late 2024, however, an exact payment date has not been determined at this time. The three rounds of payment are because, under the settlement, the County makes three equal payments, in 2022, 2023 and 2024. Updates will be posted to the homepage of this website. Please continue to monitor the website for updates.

If you are a Class Member who submitted a complete and approved claim form and have not received your check, please contact the Settlement Administrator by email at info@LynwoodStripSearch.com, by completing the form on the Contact Us page or by mail. All communication must include your current address, date of birth, and/or last four digits of your social security number, and any aliases you may have used. Please be advised that we are no longer able to honor requests for reissuance of second round payments, under any circumstances, as of June 6, 2024.

The claim filing deadline was June 4, 2020, and the final approval hearing took place on July 20, 2020.  On September 13, 2021 the Court approved payment to Class Members who submitted late claims through September 9, 2021. No further late claims will be approved.

For more details, please go to the Important Documents page to view the complete settlement documents in this case, as well as the motion for attorneys' fees. If you still have questions, you may call 1-855-233-1237.

Please be advised that we are no longer able to honor requests for reissuance of first or second round payments, under any circumstances, as of June 6, 2024.

If you need to update your name and/or address for future payments, please ensure you provide all the required information so we can process your request in a timely manner.

Change of address requests: please note we are unable to update your address on record unless we receive the following information. All address change requests require a minimum of two of the following verification points: previous address, date of birth, and/or last four digits of your social security number. Please also include any aliases you may have used.

Change of name requests: please note we are unable to update your name on record unless we receive the following information. All name change requests require a copy of state-issued photo ID and a court document showing the name change. Acceptable documentation includes a marriage certificate, divorce decree, or court order reflecting name change.

Address and name updates can be emailed or mailed to the Settlement Administrator. You may email your request with supporting information to info@LynwoodStripSearch.com.The mailing address for the Settlement Administrator is:

Lynwood Strip Search Settlement Administrator
c/o JND Legal Administration
PO Box 91070
Seattle, WA 98111