Cnty. of L. A. v. Mendez

• Decision Date: 30 May 2017
• Docket Number: No. 16–369.,16–369.
• Parties: COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, et al., Petitioners v. Angel MENDEZ, et al.
• Court: U.S. Supreme Court

137 S.Ct. 1539

198 L.Ed.2d 52

COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, et al., Petitioners

v.Angel MENDEZ, et al.

No. 16–369.

Supreme Court of the United States

Argued March 22, 2017.

Decided May 30, 2017.

E. Joshua Rosenkranz, New York, NY, for Petitioners.

Nicole A. Saharsky, for the United States as amicus curiae, by special leave of the Court, supporting the petitioners.

Leonard Feldman, Seattle, WA, for Respondents.

Mary C. Wickham, Rodrigo A. Castro–Silva, Jennifer Lehman, Millicent Rolon, Office of the County Counsel, Thomas C. Hurrell, Melinda Cantrall, Hurrell Cantrall LLP, Los Angeles, CA, E. Joshua Rosenkranz, Thomas M. Bondy, Andrew D. Silverman, Matthew L. Bush, Cynthia B. Stein, Benjamin F. Aiken, Logan Dwyer, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, New York, NY, for Petitioners.

Eric Schnapper, University of Washington School of Law, Seattle, WA, Rachel Lee, Stoel Rives LLP, Portland, OR, Leonard J. Feldman, Peterson Wampold Rosato Feldman Luna, Seattle, WA, Sara Berry, Holland & Hart LLP, Boise, ID, for Respondents.

Justice ALITO delivered the opinion of the Court.

If law enforcement officers make a "seizure" of a person using force that is judged to be reasonable based on a consideration of the circumstances relevant to that determination, may the officers nevertheless be held liable for injuries caused by the seizure on the ground that they committed a separate Fourth Amendment violation that contributed to their need to use force? The Ninth Circuit has adopted a "provocation rule" that imposes liability in such a situation.

We hold that the Fourth Amendment provides no basis for such a rule. A different Fourth Amendment violation cannot transform a later, reasonable use of force into an unreasonable seizure.

I

A

In October 2010, deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department were searching for a parolee-at-large named Ronnie O'Dell. A felony arrest warrant had been issued for O'Dell, who was believed to be armed and dangerous and had previously evaded capture. Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, No. 2:11–cv–04771 (CD Cal.), App. to Pet. for Cert. 56a, 64a. Deputies Christopher Conley and Jennifer Pederson were assigned to assist the task force searching for O'Dell. Id., at 57a–58a. The task force received word from a confidential informant that O'Dell had been seen on a bicycle at a home in Lancaster, California, owned by Paula Hughes, and the officers then mapped out a plan for apprehending O'Dell. Id., at 58a. Some officers would approach the front door of the Hughes residence, while Deputies Conley and Pederson would search the rear of the property and cover the back door of the residence. Id., at 59a. During this briefing, it was announced that a man named Angel Mendez lived in the backyard of the Hughes home with a pregnant woman named Jennifer Garcia (now Mrs. Jennifer Mendez). Ibid . Deputy Pederson heard this announcement, but at trial Deputy Conley testified that he did not remember it. Ibid.

When the officers reached the Hughes residence around midday, three of them knocked on the front door while Deputies Conley and Pederson went to the back of the property. Id., at 63a. At the front door, Hughes asked if the officers had a warrant. Ibid. A sergeant responded that they did not but were searching for O'Dell and had a warrant for his arrest. Ibid. One of the officers heard what he thought were sounds of someone running inside the house. Id., at 64a. As the officers prepared to open the door by force, Hughes opened the door and informed them that O'Dell was not in the house. Ibid . She was placed under arrest, and the house was searched, but O'Dell was not found. Ibid.

Meanwhile, Deputies Conley and Pederson, with guns drawn, searched the rear of the residence, which was cluttered with debris and abandoned automobiles. Id., at 60a, 65a. The property included three metal storage sheds and a one-room shack made of wood and plywood. Id., at 60a. Mendez had built the shack, and he and Garcia had lived inside for about 10 months. Id., at 61a. The shack had a single doorway covered by a blue blanket. Ibid . Amid the debris on the ground, an electrical cord ran into the shack, and an air conditioner was mounted on the side. Id., at 62a. A gym storage locker and clothes and other possessions were nearby. Id., at 61a. Mendez kept a BB rifle in the shack for use on rats and other pests. Id., at 62a. The BB gun "closely resembled a small caliber rifle." Ibid .

Deputies Conley and Pederson first checked the three metal sheds and found no one inside. Id., at 65a. They then approached the door of the shack. Id., at 66a. Unbeknownst to the officers, Mendez and Garcia were in the shack and were napping on a futon. Id., at 67a. The deputies did not have a search warrant and did not knock and announce their presence. Id., at 66a. When Deputy Conley opened the wooden door and pulled back the blanket, Mendez thought it was Ms. Hughes and rose from the bed, picking up the BB gun so he could stand up and place it on the floor. Id., at 68a. As a result, when the deputies entered, he was holding the BB gun, and it was "point[ing] somewhat south towards Deputy Conley." Id., at 69a. Deputy Conley yelled, "Gun!" and the deputies immediately opened fire, discharging a total of 15 rounds. Id., at 69a–70a. Mendez and Garcia "were shot multiple times and suffered severe injuries," and Mendez's right leg was later amputated below the knee. Id., at 70a. O'Dell was not in the shack or anywhere on the property. Ibid .

B

Mendez and his wife (respondents here) filed suit under Rev. Stat. § 1976, 42 U.S.C. § 1983, against petitioners, the County of Los Angeles and Deputies Conley and Pederson. As relevant here, they pressed three Fourth Amendment claims. First, they claimed that the deputies executed an unreasonable search by entering the shack without a warrant (the "warrantless entry claim"); second, they asserted that the deputies performed an unreasonable search because they failed to announce their presence before entering the shack (the "knock-and-announce claim"); and third, they claimed that the deputies effected an unreasonable seizure by deploying excessive force in opening fire after entering the shack (the "excessive force claim").

After a bench trial, the District Court ruled largely in favor of respondents. App. to Pet. for Cert. 135a–136a. The court found Deputy Conley liable on the warrantless entry claim, and the court also found both deputies liable on the knock-and-announce claim. But the court awarded nominal damages for these violations because "the act of pointing the BB gun" was a superseding cause "as far as damage [from the shooting was] concerned." App. 238.

The District Court then addressed respondents' excessive force claim. App. to Pet. for Cert. 105a–127a. The court began by evaluating whether the deputies used excessive force under Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 109 S.Ct. 1865, 104 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989). The court held that, under Graham, the deputies' use of force was reasonable "given their belief that a man was holding a firearm rifle threatening their lives." App. to Pet. for Cert. 108a. But the court did not end its excessive force analysis at this point. Instead, the court turned to the Ninth Circuit's provocation rule, which holds that "an officer's otherwise reasonable (and lawful) defensive use of force is unreasonable as a matter of law, if (1) the officer intentionally or recklessly provoked a violent response, and (2) that provocation is an independent constitutional violation."Id., at 111a. Based on this rule, the District Court held the deputies liable for excessive force and awarded respondents around $4 million in damages. Id., at 135a–136a.

The Court of Appeals affirmed in part and reversed in part. 815 F.3d 1178 (C.A.9 2016). Contrary to the District Court, the Court of Appeals held that the officers were entitled to qualified immunity on the knock-and-announce claim. Id ., at 1191–1193. But the court concluded that the warrantless entry of the shack violated clearly established law and was attributable to both deputies. Id., at 1191, 1195. Finally, and most important for present purposes, the court affirmed the application of the provocation rule. The Court of Appeals did not disagree with the conclusion that the shooting was reasonable under Graham ; instead, like the District Court, the Court of Appeals applied the provocation rule and held the deputies liable for the use of force on the theory that they had intentionally and recklessly brought about the shooting by entering the shack without a warrant in violation of clearly established law. 815 F.3d, at 1193.

The Court of Appeals also adopted an alternative rationale for its judgment. It held that "basic notions of proximate cause" would support liability even without the provocation rule because it was "reasonably foreseeable" that the officers would meet an armed homeowner when they "barged into the shack unannounced." Id., at 1194–1195.

We granted certiorari. 580 U.S. ––––, 137 S.Ct. 547, 196 L.Ed.2d 442 (2016).

II

The Ninth Circuit's provocation rule permits an excessive force claim under the Fourth Amendment "where an officer intentionally or recklessly provokes a violent confrontation, if the provocation is an independent Fourth Amendment violation." Billington v. Smith, 292 F.3d 1177, 1189 (C.A.9 2002). The rule comes into play after a forceful seizure has been judged to be reasonable under Graham. Once a court has made that determination, the rule instructs the court to ask whether the law enforcement officer violated the Fourth Amendment in some other way in the course of events leading up to the seizure. If so, that separate Fourth Amendment violation may "render the officer's otherwise reasonable defensive use of force unreasonable as a matter of law." Id., at 1190–1191.

The provocation rule, which has been "sharply questioned" outside the Ninth Circuit, City and County of San Francisco v. Sheehan, 575 U.S. ––––, ––––, n. 4, ...