Police officers investigated after 11-minute search of woman’s vagina in parking lot

Charneisha Corley, 23, was shoved to the ground before officers pulled off her underwear and probed her with her 'ankles around her ears'

Two police officers in the US are being investigated for allegedly pulling over a college student and performing a vaginal search on her in a parking lot for 11 minutes.

Charneisha Corley, 23, was stopped in Harris County, Texas for running a stop sign and was told to step out of her car to be frisked after the deputies said they smelled marijuana.

But when they found nothing on her one of the officers “bodyslammed” her onto the ground before opening her legs and pulling her pants off to probe her, the dashcam footage shows.

Charneisha Corley said she felt the police had sexually assaulted her

"I feel like they sexually assaulted me! I really do. I feel disgusted, downgraded, humiliated," she told abc13 television news channel.

The officers, one white male and one black woman, claimed they found half a gram of marijuana – but the charges were later dropped.

Now prosecutors say they have new secret evidence against Ms Corley and have re-opened their investigation after handing over what they say is fresh material to a grand jury.

Sam Cammack, Ms Corley’s lawyer, released the dashcam footage from the deputies’ car of the 11-minute search of his client in the parking lot after prosecutors reopened their case against her.

He said one of the officers can be heard saying in the video that he was determined to find that Ms Corley had drugs on her person in the incident on the night of 20 June, 2015.

“One of the officers on the tape, you could hear him talking to a passenger, who was already in custody in the officer’s car, you could hear him telling that individual ‘oh we’re going to find something, if we have to put our hands on her',” Mr Cammock said.

“The same officer bodyslammed Ms Corley, stuck her head underneath the vehicle, and completely pulled her pants off leaving her naked and exposed," he said of the video aired on Fox26.

“They then took Ms Corley and put her ankles behind her ears, both of her ankles, in a spread-eagled position, and begin to search for something in Ms Corley’s cavity in her vaginal area.”

Harris County prosecutor Natasha Sinclair spoke out against the officers involved. “No one in this office stands by the search the way it was conducted. No one condones that,” Ms Sinclair said. “No one thinks it’s appropriate. It should not have happened.”

But she added that the deputies may not necessarily be punished for their actions, saying: “Bad decisions, bad judgement, may not rise to the level of criminal offence.”

The two deputies - Ronaldine Pierre, 34, and William Strong, 37 - were put on office duties pending the outcome of the case against Ms Corley and could face prosecution depending on the evidence revealed in any trial.

Ms Sinclair said that the case against Ms Corley remained open despite the nature of the search in which the deputies claimed they found half a gram of marijuana.

“It should never have happened,” the prosecutor said, “and unfortunately we are in the business of prosecuting criminal offences and though it may not be criminal, it doesn't mean she won't receive justice.”

Mr Cammack has called for a special prosecutor without any ties to Harris County law enforcement to be brought in to handle the case against Ms Corley.