Demetrius Andrade believes he was the subject of racial profiling by Providence, Rhode Island police.
The 31-year-old middleweight titleholder was arrested and charged in his hometown last December with carrying an unlicensed gun that was discovered during what began as a traffic stop. The gun reportedly was registered in New Hampshire, where Andrade lives, but not in Rhode Island.
In a motion sent to the state court of Rhode Island on Wednesday, Andrade argued that the search was unjustified and unlawful under both the state and U.S. constitutions. Citing body-cam footage worn by police, Andrade argues that he was detained longer than the time needed to deal with a minor violation. Police seized his backpack after 11 minutes, Andrade said.
“This was, at most, a parking violation,” his attorney told the Providence Journal. “And they turned it into a full-fledged search. We think his rights were absolutely violated.”
The incident occurred a couple of months after Andrade (26-0, 16 knockouts) won a vacant middleweight title when he outpointed Walter Kautondokwa at the TD Garden in Boston.
A hearing is scheduled for early December.