Dozens of college and university campuses experienced protests in April and May of 2024 due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Many were peaceful, but some turned violent — and they engendered a wide variety of law...more
In the plaintiffs’ lawsuits against the City, former police officer Derek Chauvin, and several additional Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) officers, the complaints alleged police misconduct, use of excessive force, and...more
Law enforcement critics have launched concerted attacks on the doctrine of qualified immunity in an effort to mischaracterize the doctrine as allowing police officers to escape liability for clearly unconstitutional conduct. ...more
On June 28, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Lombardo v. St. Louis, 20-391, holding per curium that excessive force precedent requires courts to employ a “careful, context-specific analysis” on summary judgment. In...more
Trust is the cornerstone of safe and effective law enforcement. In New Jersey and around the country, building trust among police and the communities they serve has always been a challenge, but after the murder of George...more
In a 5-3 decision authored by Chief Justice Roberts, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Torres v. Madrid that a woman who was shot while fleeing from police officers was “seized,” even though she remained at large. ...more
Recent unrest has thrust the doctrine of qualified immunity into the spotlight. Many of those who oppose law enforcement frequently misrepresent the nature, extent, and intent of this limited immunity. Doing so fosters the...more
On June 12, 2020, the Police Officer Standards and Training Council (POST), a division of the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, amended its Compliance to Law Enforcement Standards and Practices (CLESP)...more
A while back I wrote about the collateral order doctrine as discussed by the Fourth Circuit in Williams v. Strickland. Williams involved an alleged excessive force claim against a law enforcement officer and an...more
In an October 2010 use of force case arising out of an incident in Los Angeles County, the Ninth Circuit attempt to expand officer liability with the “Provocation Rule” was struck down by the United States Supreme Court....more
On April 29, 1992, a not-guilty verdict for the four Los Angeles Police Department officers who had been charged with assault and the use of unreasonable and excessive force on Rodney King, sparked the LA Riots. Today, in an...more
On June 22, 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Kinsgley v. Hendrickson, No. 13-1175, holding that to prove an excessive force claim, a pretrial detainee need show only that an officer’s deliberate use of force was...more
BB&K Attorney Tamara Bogosian Anaylzes Recent Court Decisions That Call for Monday Morning Quarterbacking - The U.S. Supreme Court made clear in the 1989 landmark ruling of Graham v. Connor that hindsight was not the...more
Overview: Deputies shot and killed Shane Hayes inside his home. His daughter filed suit against the deputies and the county for excessive force, Fourth Amendment violations, negligent wrongful death and claims against the...more
Overview: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that Sonora police officers were entitled to qualified immunity from claims alleging unlawful arrest and use of excessive force on an “out-of-control” juvenile. ...more
Overview: The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that Washington state police used excessive force when firing a Taser in dart mode at a passive bystander. The sergeant and four officers had already tased an elderly...more