Without turning today’s legal update session into a political discussion, we will discuss a new case out of the 1st Circuit involving “pole cameras”. The 1st Circuit’s argument rests on the storied legal principle of ‘Stare Decisis’. This principle has an important […]
1st Circuit – Pole Camera: United States v. Moore-Bush Continue Reading »
Today we head to the 11th Circuit which covers the states of Alabama, Georgia and Florida to talk about issues that are currently faced by police departments across the country. These issues include appropriate applications of force, Qualified Immunity and Bystander
Use of Force Failure to Intervene – Eleventh Circuit Continue Reading »
Today’s case highlights the important role that all of the facts play in a court’s legal calculation and an important operational consideration for your agency: it is necessary to have a plan in place that allows officers to change and
Qualified Immunity, Deadly Use of Force Continue Reading »
Today’s article will discuss a case that focuses on an Officer-Involved-Shooting in Warren, Arkansas and deals with the shooting of a suspect who, unbeknownst to the officer, was not in possession of a handgun at the time he was shot. Under
Use of Force: Officer Involved Shooting – Goffin v. Ashcraft Continue Reading »
For today’s article, we will look at a Civil case out of Massachusetts where the trial court and ultimately, the 1st Circuit, looked at the facts and circumstances involved in O’Brien’s arrest and subsequent booking and determined that the officers were
Civil Use of Force – O’Brien v Town of Bellingham Continue Reading »
First Circuit United States v. Del-Rosario-Acosta, 968 F.3d 123 (1st Cir. 2020) Three Puerto Rico Police Department officers responded to a call from a gas station reporting an armed person on the premises. When the officers arrived, they encountered a crowd
Circuit Court of Appeals – September 2020 Continue Reading »
As we navigate through this difficult time, we know that one of our basic liability protections, qualified immunity, is under siege on all fronts, at both the state and federal levels (for more on Qualified Immunity see Parts One, Two, and Three from
Deadly Force Pursuit & Qualified Immunity: Monzon v. City of Murrieta Continue Reading »
There are a lot of conversations across the globe today regarding UOF in the US. And one thing that we can all agree on is that police officers making a joke out of training, especially in the area of use
What Not to Do: UOF Training 101 Continue Reading »
Part Three – What the Public Needs to Know So, what is qualified immunity? What does it mean to society as a whole? And what should law enforcement officers tell the public when it comes to qualified immunity? What we
Qualified Immunity – What Every Officer Needs To Know: Part Three Continue Reading »
Part Two – The Law of Qualified Immunity and Due Process To fully understand qualified immunity, we need to discuss why qualified immunity is important to the judicial system and taxpayer dollars. More often than not as a Use of
Qualified Immunity – What Every Officer Needs To Know: Part Two Continue Reading »
History of How Qualified Immunity Came to Be As I watch what is occurring across the Country I am confused. I have practiced law for nineteen years. And I’ve been in awe over the past couple of months as I
Qualified Immunity – What Every Officer Needs To Know: Part One Continue Reading »
A case out of the 10th Circuit back in January 2020 started as a typical neighborly dispute. This case has a number of twists and turns involving Reasonable Suspicion vs Probable Cause, handcuffing during an Investigative Detention, and the process for
Investigative Detention: Donahue v. Wihongi Continue Reading »
