CAVANAUGH v. CITY
| Citation | 625 F.3d 661 |
| Decision Date | 03 November 2010 |
| Docket Number | No. 10-4017.,10-4017. |
| Parties | Shannon CAVANAUGH; Brad Cavanaugh, Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. WOODS CROSS CITY; Daniel Davis, Defendants-Appellants. |
| Court | United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (10th Circuit) |
OPINION TEXT STARTS HERE
R. Blake Hamilton (and Peter Stirba of Stirba & Associates, on the briefs), Salt Lake City, UT, for Defendants-Appellants.
Kathleen E. McDonald (Bret M. Hanna and Travis M. Wilson of Jones, Waldo, Holbrook & McDonough, P.C., with her on the brief), Salt Lake City, UT, for Plaintiffs-Appellees.
Before KELLY, Circuit Judge, BRORBY, Senior Circuit Judge, and GORSUCH, Circuit Judge.
Defendants-Appellants Woods Cross City, Utah and Officer Daniel Davis appeal from the district court's order denying their motion for summary judgment based on qualified immunity. Plaintiffs-Appellees Shannon Cavanaugh and Brad Cavanaugh had sued Defendants-Appellants under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging that Officer Davis's Tasering of Ms. Cavanaugh violated her rights under the Fourth Amendment by using excessive force. Though not a final judgment, our jurisdiction over the legal issues in this qualified immunity appeal arises under 28 U.S.C. § 1291. Mitchell v. Forsyth, 472 U.S. 511, 530, 105 S.Ct. 2806, 86 L.Ed.2d 411 (1985). We affirm.
Although several material facts in this case are disputed, we “view the facts and draw reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to ... the party opposing the summary judgment.” Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372, 378, 127 S.Ct. 1769, 167 L.Ed.2d 686 (2007). Accordingly, we view the facts supported by evidence in the light most favorable to the Cavanaughs, notwithstanding that the officer maintains that his use of the Taser was precipitated by his knowledge that Ms. Cavanaugh may have had a knife and was verbally and physically non-cooperative. Aplt. App. 64-65 at 244-45.
On the night of December 8, 2006, three officers from the Woods Cross City Police Department responded to a non-emergency call placed by Brad Cavanaugh. Id. 41 at 53. Mr. Cavanaugh's call requested help finding his wife, Shannon, who had stormed out of the house after a domestic dispute. Id. 42 at 55. Upon the officers' arrival, Mr. Cavanaugh narrated the events of the evening-namely, that he and Shannon had a fight, during which Shannon attempted to put him in a closet; that Shannon had consumed alcohol and pain medication; and that Shannon had left the home with a kitchen knife. Id. 20.
After this conversation, Officers Schultz and Moore left the house to search for Ms. Cavanaugh. Id. Officer Davis remained inside with Mr. Cavanaugh. Id. After a short period of time, James Murphy, the Cavanaughs' neighbor, observed Ms. Cavanaugh walking down the sidewalk towards her home. Aplee. App. Doc. 4 at 22. He specifically looked at her hands-which were clearly visible by her side-and saw that she was not holding a knife. Id. As Ms. Cavanaugh approached her home, Officer Davis exited the house and began walking down the driveway. Id. at 23.
As Officer Davis and Ms. Cavanaugh drew within several feet of each other, Ms. Cavanaugh veered off the walkway towards the front door, cutting across the lawn. Aplt. App. 21; Aplee. App. Doc. 4 at 23-24. She walked quickly, but did not run. Aplt. App. 21; Aplee. App. Doc. 4 at 24. Officer Davis gently placed his flashlight and clipboard on the ground and followed her, no more than six feet behind. Aplee. App. Doc. 4 at 24-25. He fumbled with his holster for a brief moment, removed his Taser, and discharged the Taser into Ms. Cavanaugh's back without warning. Id. at 25. Ms. Cavanaugh, whose feet were on the front steps of her home, went rigid, spun around, and struck her head on the concrete steps. Id. at 26. As a result of this fall, Ms. Cavanaugh suffered a traumatic brain injury. She later plead guilty to assault-domestic violence and intoxication. Aplt. App. 57-58.
Following these events, Mr. and Ms. Cavanaugh filed suit against Officer Davis and Woods Cross City alleging excessive force in violation of the Federal Constitution. The Cavanaughs also brought various state-law tort and constitutional claims. Officer Davis moved for summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds, claiming that his actions did not violate the constitution and, if they did, that the law was not clearly established at the time. See Aplts. Motion for Summary Judgment, Doc. 102 at 2; Doc. 103 at 10-19. 1 Woods Cross City also moved for summary judgment, arguing that no constitutional violation had occurred and, in any event, that the City's policies or customs were not the moving force behind Officer Davis's actions. See Doc. 102 at 2; Doc. 103 at 20-21.
The district court rejected Officer Davis's qualified immunity defense, holding that a reasonable jury could conclude that Officer Davis's conduct constituted excessive force under Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 109 S.Ct. 1865, 104 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989), and Casey v. City of Federal Heights, 509 F.3d 1278 (10th Cir.2007). Aplt. App. 24-26. The district court further held that the law was clearly established at the time of the incident. Id. at 26. The district court also denied Woods Cross City's motion for summary judgment. Although Plaintiffs-Appellees conceded the constitutionality of the written policy, the district court found enough evidence for a jury to conclude that the City had a constitutionally deficient unwritten Taser policy. The City's police chief had testified to this effect. Id. at 28.
On appeal, Officer Davis argues that his conduct did not violate the Constitution, and, if so, that the law was not clearly established at the time. See Aplt. Br. at 7-8. Woods Cross City argues that it cannot be liable because no constitutional violation occurred. See id. at 25. Woods Cross City does not challenge the district court's conclusion regarding the City's unwritten Taser policy.
The Defendants-Appellants' opening brief takes issue with the district court's characterization of the facts based upon the evidence-which is really an attack concerning evidentiary sufficiency. Of course, jurisdiction in a qualified immunity appeal extends only to the district court's legal conclusions and we so limit our analysis. See Thomas v. Durastanti, 607 F.3d 655, 662 (10th Cir.2010).
Our review of a summary judgment decision is de novo. Berry & Murphy, P.C. v. Carolina Cas. Ins. Co., 586 F.3d 803, 808 (10th Cir.2009). However, “[b]ecause of the underlying purposes of qualified immunity, we review summary judgment orders deciding qualified immunity questions differently from other summary judgment decisions.” Cortez v. McCauley, 478 F.3d 1108, 1114 (10th Cir.2007) (en banc) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). When a defendant moving for summary judgment asserts qualified immunity, the court must conduct a two-part analysis:
First, a court must decide whether the facts that a plaintiff has alleged or shown make out a violation of a constitutional right. Second, if the plaintiff has satisfied this first step, the court must decide whether the right at issue was “clearly established” at the time of defendant's alleged misconduct.
Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 129 S.Ct. 808, 815-16, 172 L.Ed.2d 565 (2009) (citations omitted). Thus, we must determine whether the Plaintiffs-in this case, the Cavanaughs-have made this two-part showing. See Hobbs ex rel. Hobbs v. Zenderman, 579 F.3d 1171, 1183 (10th Cir.2009).
[1] Whether an officer's actions are objectively reasonable in light of stipulated facts “is a pure question of law.” Scott, 550 U.S. at 381 n. 8, 127 S.Ct. 1769. Under the facts presented by the Cavanaughs, Officer Davis's actions were objectively unreasonable and violated the Fourth Amendment.
Excessive force claims are governed by the Fourth Amendment's “objective reasonableness” standard. See Graham, 490 U.S. at 388, 109 S.Ct. 1865; Casey, 509 F.3d at 1281-82. Under this standard courts must “careful[ly] balance ... the nature and quality of the intrusion on the individual's Fourth Amendment interests against the countervailing governmental interests at stake.” Graham, 490 U.S. at 396, 109 S.Ct. 1865. (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). “The ultimate question ‘is whether the officers' actions are objectively reasonable in light of the facts and circumstances confronting them.’ ” Casey, 509 F.3d at 1281 ( quoting Graham, 490 U.S. at 397, 109 S.Ct. 1865). More specifically, courts determine whether the officer's use of force was reasonable given the severity of the suspected crime, the immediate threat to the officer or others, and whether the suspect was actively resisting arrest or evading arrest by flight. See Graham, 490 U.S. at 396, 109 S.Ct. 1865; Casey, 509 F.3d at 1281-82.
We must take care to judge the situation “from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight.” Graham, 490 U.S. at 396, 109 S.Ct. 1865. Thus, “[t]he calculus of reasonableness must embody allowance for the fact that police officers are often forced to make split-second judgements ... about the amount of force that is necessary in a particular situation.” Id. at 396-97, 109 S.Ct. 1865.
[2] Applying the Graham analysis to the facts in the light most favorable to the Cavanaughs, Officer Davis's conduct was objectively unreasonable. Officer Davis's weapon of choice was a Taser-a weapon that sends up to 50,000 volts of electricity through a person's body, causing temporary paralysis and excruciating pain. See Casey, 509 F.3d at 1285; Bryan v. MacPherson, 608 F.3d 614, 620 (9th Cir.2010); Draper v. Reynolds, 369 F.3d 1270, 1273 n. 3 (11th Cir.2004) (). Although Tasers may not constitute deadly force, their use unquestionably “seizes” the victim in an abrupt and violent manner. Accordingly, the “nature and quality” of the intrusion into the interests of Ms. Cavanaugh protected by the ...
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