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The state's highest court heard arguments Wednesday in a lawsuit in which a black man says he was stopped by state troopers in Westchester County and detained for more than an hour as his car was searched and damaged, just because of his race. Manhattan resident Artemus Lyles claims troopers violated federal search-and-seizure laws and his constitutional rights to equal protection under the law. But the 45-minute proceeding at the state Court of Appeals didn't focus on civil rights, racial profiling or search-and-seizure rules. Instead, lawyers and judges concentrated on technical arguments over what statute of limitations applied and what legal precedents held sway. According to court documents, two state troopers stopped Lyles on March 27, 1999, as he was driving westbound on Interstate 287 in Westchester County in a used Cadillac he had bought at a recent auction. Lyles said he was ticketed for having smoke coming from the tailpipe. But he was he was detained for 80 minutes while he car was searched - without his consent. He was allowed to leave but stopped again three minutes later. During a second search, Lyles said troopers handcuffed him until he agreed to allow the trunk to be inspected and that troopers damaged a door and the dashboard. [more

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