Crime & Safety
Lawyer Accuses Salem Police Of Racial Profiling In Drug Case
When cross-examining a Salem police lieutenant, a lawyer suggested his client had been pulled over because he was Hispanic.
SALEM, MA — A defense attorney accused the Salem police department of racial profiling during the trial of a Hispanic man accused of possessing fentanyl with intent to distribute.
"You stopped the vehicle because you saw a Hispanic man driving by,” Rudy Miller said to Salem police Lt. Kristian Hanson during cross examination in Salem District Court Wednesday in the trial of Danny Hernandez.
"If you’re going to grasp at straws, go ahead," Hanson said after telling Miller she did not appreciate his line of questioning.
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According to the Salem News, which first reported this story, police began investigating Hernandez after finding a phone number under a fake name in the cellphone that had been given to police by the parents of a woman who died of an overdose. Hanson and other police who took the stand Wednesday said they had arranged a drug buy after using the phone to contact Hernandez, which led to his June 8, 2018 arrest.
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