A body cavity search, also known simply as a cavity search, is either a visual search or a manual internal inspection of

body cavities A body cavity is any space or compartment, or potential space, in an animal body. Cavities accommodate organs and other structures; cavities as potential spaces contain fluid. The two largest human body cavities are the ventral body cavity, a ...

for prohibited materials (

contraband Contraband (from Medieval French ''contrebande'' "smuggling") is any item that, relating to its nature, is illegal to be possessed or sold. It comprises goods that by their nature are considered too dangerous or offensive in the eyes of the leg ...

), such as illegal drugs, money, jewelry, or weapons. Body cavities frequently used for concealment include the

mouth A mouth also referred to as the oral is the body orifice through which many animals ingest food and animal communication#Auditory, vocalize. The body cavity immediately behind the mouth opening, known as the oral cavity (or in Latin), is also t ...

vagina In mammals and other animals, the vagina (: vaginas or vaginae) is the elastic, muscular sex organ, reproductive organ of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vulval vestibule to the cervix (neck of the uterus). The #Vag ...

, and

rectum The rectum (: rectums or recta) is the final straight portion of the large intestine in humans and some other mammals, and the gut in others. Before expulsion through the anus or cloaca, the rectum stores the feces temporarily. The adult ...

. It is far more invasive than the standard strip search that is typically performed on individuals taken into custody, either upon police arrest or

incarceration Imprisonment or incarceration is the restraint of a person's liberty for any cause whatsoever, whether by authority of the government, or by a person acting without such authority. In the latter case it is considered " false imprisonment". Impri ...

at a jail,

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol, penitentiary, detention center, correction center, correctional facility, or remand center, is a facility where Prisoner, people are Imprisonment, imprisoned under the authority of the State (polity), state ...

, or

psychiatric hospital A psychiatric hospital, also known as a mental health hospital, a behavioral health hospital, or an asylum is a specialized medical facility that focuses on the treatment of severe Mental disorder, mental disorders. These institutions cater t ...

. Often the procedure is repeated when the person leaves the institution. Body cavity searches may also be conducted at some international border crossings such as the

U.S. Customs and Border Protection United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the largest federal law enforcement agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security. It is the country's primary border control organization, charged with regulating and facilita ...

when they suspect international travelers of hiding contraband—such as drugs.

Procedure

Many articles of contraband are concealable in the body's cavities, via means such as insertion into the

. Illegal drugs are often found in condoms and temporarily stowed in the colon, and cylinders such as cigar tubes are used to hide money, intravenous syringes, and knives. Duplicate

handcuff Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists in proximity to each other. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each cuff has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet t ...

keys could be concealed in many body orifices, such as in the nasal passages or underneath the tongue. In a thorough ''visual body cavity'' search, a

flashlight A flashlight (US English) or electric torch (Commonwealth English), usually shortened to torch, is a portable hand-held electric lamp. Formerly, the light source typically was a miniature incandescent light bulb, but these have been displaced ...

is used to illuminate common bodily areas, including the

nostril A nostril (or naris , : nares ) is either of the two orifices of the nose. They enable the entry and exit of air and other gasses through the nasal cavities. In birds and mammals, they contain branched bones or cartilages called turbinates ...

s, ears,

navel The navel (clinically known as the umbilicus; : umbilici or umbilicuses; also known as the belly button or tummy button) is a protruding, flat, or hollowed area on the abdomen at the attachment site of the umbilical cord. Structure The u ...

penis A penis (; : penises or penes) is a sex organ through which male and hermaphrodite animals expel semen during copulation (zoology), copulation, and through which male placental mammals and marsupials also Urination, urinate. The term ''pen ...

(

urethra The urethra (: urethras or urethrae) is the tube that connects the urinary bladder to the urinary meatus, through which Placentalia, placental mammals Urination, urinate and Ejaculation, ejaculate. The external urethral sphincter is a striated ...

and

foreskin In male Human body, human anatomy, the foreskin, also known as the prepuce (), is the double-layered fold of Human skin, skin, Mucous membrane, mucosal and Muscle tissue, muscular tissue at the distal end of the human penis that covers the glans ...

) or

vulva In mammals, the vulva (: vulvas or vulvae) comprises mostly external, visible structures of the female sex organ, genitalia leading into the interior of the female reproductive tract. For humans, it includes the mons pubis, labia majora, lab ...

, and

buttocks The buttocks (: buttock) are two rounded portions of the exterior anatomy of most mammals, located on the posterior of the pelvic region. In humans, the buttocks are located between the lower back and the perineum. They are composed of a lay ...

. Generally, the detainee is required to cooperate with manipulating these body parts as they are examined.

Squatting Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building (usually residential) that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there wer ...

is sometimes instructed during the visual search, and prolonged holding of a squat can be demanded; squats are sometimes demanded while standing over a mirror (so that the observer has an improved view). The person may be asked to “squat and cough,” with the aim of dislodging an object stored in the rectum or vagina. During ''manual body cavity'' searches, an inmate is temporarily transferred to an offsite clinic to be examined by a licensed physician of the same sex; body orifices are probed using fingers or instruments. The circumstances in which these inspections may be done are often restricted, such as on individuals refusing to offer to consent to a visual body cavity search for reasons other than anxiety or in situations where there is a strong evidence to suspect the presence of contraband, and require a court order. As cavity searches have proven as an ineffective strategy in the total prevention of smuggling objects as it cannot detect objects in the intestines or stomach, as well as taking into consideration the intrusive nature and inherently humiliating or degrading procedure, it has become fairly normal for authorities to instead isolate individuals in a monitored environment until they pass excreta and/or x-ray the individual's pelvic area as it is less invasive and psychologically damaging.

Legal standing

Some inmates and human rights activists argue that body cavity searches are done not so much to stop the flow of contraband but rather to harass and humiliate detainees. A visual inspection of the rectum will not reveal objects concealed deeply inside. Likewise, it is possible to circumvent detection during manual body cavity searches. In some instances, suspects swallow packages of drugs protected by condoms and allow them to pass through their

digestive tract The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract, digestive tract, alimentary canal) is the tract or passageway of the Digestion, digestive system that leads from the mouth to the anus. The tract is the largest of the body's systems, after the cardiovascula ...

. Only diagnostic imaging will reveal the concealed contraband, invalidating the body cavity search. Drug-Packer X-Ray

Because these searches are highly invasive and greatly compromise an individual’s right of privacy, the legality of visual and manual body cavity searches is frequently contested.

United States

In the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, '' Bell v. Wolfish'' is the benchmark case on this issue. In its judgment of the case, the U.S. Supreme Court established a standard of reasonable grounds for performing cavity searches. Among these are security concerns at prisons. Such searches are generally governed by the

Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution The Fourth Amendment (Amendment IV) to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. It prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures and sets requirements for issuing warrants: warrants must be issued by a judge or magistra ...

, which prohibits searches without probable cause.

UK

In the UK, cavity searches are not carried out upon entry to prisons, although new prisoners are required to perform squats as part of their strip-search. Though said prisoners may be visually searched, prison staff do not have the power to carry out cavity searches.

In popular culture

The body cavity search is frequently used as a

joke A joke is a display of humour in which words are used within a specific and well-defined narrative structure to make people laugh and is usually not meant to be interpreted literally. It usually takes the form of a story, often with dialogue, ...

in comedies such as the movies ''

Beavis and Butt-head Do America ''Beavis and Butt-Head Do America'' is a 1996 American adult animation, adult animated comedy film, comedy road movie, road film based on the MTV animated television series ''Beavis and Butt-Head''. The film was co-written and directed by series ...

'', ''

Rush Hour 3 ''Rush Hour 3'' is a 2007 American Buddy Cop film, buddy cop action comedy film directed by Brett Ratner, written by Jeff Nathanson. It is the third installment in the Rush Hour (franchise), ''Rush Hour'' franchise and sequel to ''Rush Hour 2'' ...

'', and '' Wayne’s World'', and the American

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

television series A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, and cable, or distributed digitally on streaming plat ...

Seinfeld ''Seinfeld'' ( ) is an American television sitcom created by Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld that originally aired on NBC from July 5, 1989, to May 14, 1998, with a total of nine seasons consisting of List of Seinfeld episodes, 180 episodes. It ...

'', due to its humiliating, uncomfortable, and invasive nature. Generally, it adds to the suffering of a comedic foil. It is generally not depicted explicitly, but implied by the donning of a lubricated glove by a searcher. It is similar to the use of the rectal examination in this regard.

References

External links

* ''Bell v. Wolfish'', 441 U.S. 520, 559 (1979

* * {{Cite journal , doi = 10.1177/0093854885012004003 , last1 = Kalinich , first1 = David B. , last2 = Stojkovic , first2 = Stan , year = 1985 , title = Contraband: The Basis for Legitimate Power in a Prison Social System , journal = Criminal Justice and Behavior , volume = 12 , issue = 4, pages = 435–451 , s2cid = 220590141 * Lerner, Jimmy (2002). ''You Got Nothing Coming: Notes From a Prison Fish''. New York: Broadway Books. Articles containing video clips Imprisonment and detention Law enforcement techniques Nudity Searches and seizures Strip search