L.A. may be liable for jailhouse informant policies 
Published: May 13, 2013
Tags: jailhouse informant, wrongful conviction, §1983
Los Angeles County may be liable for the wrongful conviction of a man for murder based on the perjured testimony of a jailhouse informant, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in reversing a dismissal.
Benchmarks: NYC escapes $2M Taser verdict
By:
Pat Murphy
Published: March 25, 2013
Tags: Excessive Force, Fourth Amendment, Taser, §1983
New York City will not have to pay $2 million to a Bronx man who alleged he was tased by police while undergoing a medical emergency.
Can age discrimination claim proceed under §1983?
Published: March 18, 2013
Tags: ADEA, age discrimination, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, equal protection, U.S. Supreme Court, §1983
The U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether state and local government employees can avoid the limitations of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act by bringing age discrimination claims directly under the Equal Protection Clause and §1983.
Benchmarks: Officer fired after arresting mayor’s son can sue
By:
Pat Murphy
Published: March 12, 2013
Tags: First Amendment, political corruption, retaliation, §1983
An Illinois police officer claimed he lost his job because he complained that his department had a bad habit of looking the other way when politically-connected drivers were caught committing traffic violations.
Monday, a federal appeals court decided that the officer could sue for a violation of his First Amendment rights.
Officer couldn’t read letter found in search of car
Published: March 11, 2013
Tags: civil rights, Fourth Amendment, qualified immunity, search and seizure, §1983
A police officer violated the Fourth Amendment when he read a letter discovered during the consent search of a motor vehicle, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.
Heroin use evidence admissible in excessive force case
Published: February 19, 2013
Tags: Excessive Force, §1983
Police officers sued for using excessive force could introduce evidence of the victim’s heroin use before an arrest, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in affirming a defense verdict.
Officer may be liable for excessive use of Taser
Published: February 6, 2013
Tags: civil rights, Excessive Force, Fourth Amendment, qualified immunity, Taser, §1983
A police officer may be liable for repeatedly shooting a domestic violence suspect with a taser after it appeared that he had stopped resisting arrest, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in reversing a grant of qualified immunity.
Repeated Taser use may have been excessive
Published: February 1, 2013
Tags: civil rights, Excessive Force, Taser, §1983
Police may have violated a woman’s civil rights when they shot her twice with a Taser for allegedly interfering with the arrest of her son, the 7th Circuit has ruled in reversing judgment.
Chicago settles case of mentally ill detainee for $22.5M
By:
Kimberly Atkins
Published: January 30, 2013
Tags: ADA, civil rights, police misconduct, Verdicts and Settlements, §1983
In a landmark settlement, the City of Chicago has agreed to pay $22.5 million to the family of a woman who was severely injured after police arrested her, and then failing to recognize her mental illness, released her into an unfamiliar and dangerous neighborhood.
Benchmarks: Flipped-off cop couldn’t initiate traffic stop
By:
Pat Murphy
Published: January 4, 2013
Tags: Fourth Amendment, probable cause, reasonable suspicion, search and seizure, traffic stop, §1983
The 2nd Circuit yesterday revived the civil rights suit of a man who was stopped and arrested after flipping off a police officer he observed manning a speed trap.
