Gainor v. Douglas County, Georgia
| Decision Date | 30 September 1998 |
| Docket Number | No. Civ.A. 1:97-CV357A JEC.,Civ.A. 1:97-CV357A JEC. |
| Citation | 59 F.Supp.2d 1259 |
| Parties | John Michael GAINOR, Plaintiffs, v. DOUGLAS COUNTY, GEORGIA, et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Georgia |
Willis Marshall, Adam Jett, Jett & Liss, Douglasville, GA, for plaintiff.
Phillip Savrin, Theodore Freeman, Freeman, Mathis & Gary, Atlanta, GA, Jennings H.B. Garbade, Office of Jennings H. Garbade, Douglasville, GA, for defendants.
This case is presently before the Court on defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment [26]. The Court has reviewed the record and the arguments of the parties and, for the reasons set out below, concludes that defendants' motion should be GRANTED.
Plaintiff Gainor is no stranger to police stops. His apparent modus operandi during such stops is to refuse to cooperate or to provide identification to the police when the latter, suspicious that plaintiff is engaging in criminal activity, requests such information. After two of these encounters — the Georgia arrest leading to this legal action and an arrest in Minnesota — plaintiff sued for monetary damages following his arrest by police based on what they perceived to be obstructive conduct during the encounter. See generally Gainor v. Rogers, 973 F.2d 1379, at 1381-82, 1390 (8th Cir.1992).2
The events leading to the present claim occurred on February 23, 1996, when Deputy Timothy Bearden of the Douglas County Sheriff's Department was dispatched to the residence of Ann Camp. Ms. Camp, a 51 year-old resident of Douglas County, resided on Highway 166, a two-lane road through a residential neighborhood of single-family homes. She told Deputy Bearden that she had heard "suspicious noises" a few days earlier. Ms. Camp also told Deputy Bearden that she believed her carport door may have been "jimmied", as she had experienced difficulty opening it. Ms. Camp requested increased patrols past her residence that day because she would be home alone. Deputy Bearden noted Ms. Camp's concerns in a report and returned to his patrol.
Approximately 30 minutes later, Deputy Bearden returned to Ms. Camp's residence and saw plaintiff standing in Ms. Camp's yard. According to the officer, plaintiff began walking down the road after he sighted the deputy. According to plaintiff, he was not in Ms. Camp's yard when Deputy Bearden approached, but instead was walking along a narrow path that parallels the road, within four to five feet of the shoulder of the road, in front of Ms. Camp's residence. The Court must accept plaintiff's version of these facts for purposes of this motion.
At any rate it is clear that plaintiff was in front of Ms. Camp's home when the officer approached. Deputy Bearden immediately noticed that plaintiff had a "drifter's appearance in that he looked to be unclean, had a `scruffy' beard, and was wearing a large backpack and what appeared to be coveralls." (Def. Bearden's Aff. [26] at ¶ 6.) Suspicious of plaintiff's presence in front of Ms. Camp's home, as a result of Ms. Camp's concern about an attempted burglary, Deputy Bearden became further suspicious because plaintiff had no visible means of transportation, because Ms. Camp did not have any visitors when he was at her house only minutes before, and because, from Deputy Bearden's experience as a police officer, he knew that burglary tools (such as hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, etc.) could be carried in a backpack. (Id.) (Indeed, as plaintiff now concedes, he did have such tools in his backpack.) (Dep. Of Gainor at 141-43)
Deputy Bearden passed plaintiff, then made two consecutive u-turns so as to approach plaintiff from behind. As he did this, Deputy Bearden activated the emergency lights on his patrol car, which in turn activated a video camera mounted on the car's dashboard. As Deputy Bearden pulled up behind plaintiff, he instructed plaintiff, repeatedly, to remain in front of his vehicle. Plaintiff refused to comply with the officer's directive, however, for after initially pausing in front of the vehicle, plaintiff proceeded in front of the car to the driver's side window and demanded, "Am I breaking the law right now?" (Videotape [27].)
Deputy Bearden repeated his request for plaintiff to return to the front of the vehicle, but plaintiff again refused to comply with the directive of the officer and, instead, turned and walked away. Deputy Bearden again drove his car up behind plaintiff. Plaintiff, however, continued walking away from Deputy Bearden and toward Whitesburg at a brisk pace.
At this point, Bearden exited his car, with a cannister of pepper spray in his right hand, which he kept behind his back, and stated, "Hey, come here." (Videotape [27].) Plaintiff turned, walked towards Deputy Bearden, and stated, (Id.) Deputy Bearden asked plaintiff for identification and plaintiff interrupted, "Am I breaking the law?" (Id.) During this exchange, plaintiff repeatedly gestured adamantly with his finger to both the ground and to Bearden while shifting his weight forward and rising on his toes.
After plaintiff refused Deputy Bearden's repeated requests for identification, Bearden told plaintiff that plaintiff was "about to go to jail." (Id.) While pointing at Deputy Bearden, plaintiff responded, "You take me to jail and I'm not breaking the law and you're going to be in trouble." (Id.) Bearden agreed with plaintiff's assertion, and while apparently pointing back at the camera mounted in his vehicle, began to state that if plaintiff would show him some identification, but before he could finish his sentence, plaintiff again turned to walk away.
At this point, Deputy Bearden grabbed plaintiff for the first time, turned him around, and repeated that he wanted to talk to him. Plaintiff repeated his demand to know if he was breaking the law. Plaintiff and Bearden then began to argue, with both men, at times, raising their voices and pointing at the other, about whether plaintiff was required to show Bearden his identification. Plaintiff stated that he could prove to Bearden in court that he was not so required, and that he had proven this in the past.
Deputy Bearden then instructed plaintiff to keep his hands down and repeated his threat to take plaintiff to jail if he did not show the officer his identification. After plaintiff again asked what law he was breaking, Deputy Bearden stated that by not showing him identification, plaintiff was guilty of obstruction of an officer. Plaintiff then asked Deputy Bearden whether he could quote the Fourth Amendment and, if Bearden could not, offered to quote it to him. After each man assured the other that he did not feel "like playing games," the ante was raised as Deputy Bearden stated, "Right now, either show me your I.D. or your going to jail." (Id.) Again, plaintiff stated that he would not give Bearden any identification unless he was breaking the law.
Deputy Bearden informed plaintiff that he was under arrest and told him to go to the police vehicle. While repeatedly trying to step around Deputy Bearden so that he could continue on his way towards Whitesburg, plaintiff asked why he was under arrest. Bearden reiterated that plaintiff was under arrest for obstruction. As plaintiff continued to try to advance and maneuver around Deputy Bearden, Bearden repeatedly told plaintiff to "take a step back," and that plaintiff was "going to jail." (Id.)
After initially asserting that he was not going, plaintiff stated that if Deputy Bearden took him to jail it would be false arrest and assured Bearden that the law also applied to him. Deputy Bearden, reminding plaintiff to take a step back, told plaintiff that that was fine, and firmly told plaintiff to go to the vehicle. Plaintiff responded that he wanted to speak with an attorney, and repeated his statement. Bearden, in an agitated tone, stated, "You're about to talk to one," grabbed plaintiff's arm, spun him and attempted to handcuff him. (Id.)
Plaintiff, however, successfully pulled his arm free. Deputy Bearden then grabbed plaintiff and knocked plaintiff's feet out from under him, successfully tripping plaintiff to the ground. Plaintiff jumped back up before Deputy Bearden was able to reach him. Plaintiff then told Deputy Bearden not to give him a hard time. Deputy Bearden told plaintiff to get down, and when he refused, Bearden again tripped plaintiff to the ground. Plaintiff again quickly got back on his feet.
Deputy Bearden then took the pepper spray out from behind his back. Plaintiff stated, "Sir, you'd better not spray me with that." (Id.) Deputy Bearden renewed his demand for plaintiff to get down on the ground. Plaintiff refused, and from a distance of approximately three to four feet, Bearden attempted to spray plaintiff with the pepper spray. Though on the videotape it appears that plaintiff's head was completely immersed in the spray, plaintiff stated that defendant "tried to spray my face with pepper spray but missed apparently or a gust of wind blew the spray elsewhere." (Pl.'s Aff. [32] at ¶ 15.)
In the wake of Deputy Bearden's use of the pepper spray, plaintiff wound up on the Whitesburg side of Bearden. He turned and walked quickly away. Deputy Bearden called Douglas County on his walkie-talkie and stated that he had attempted unsuccessfully to arrest plaintiff and that the use of pepper spray to restrain plaintiff had been unsuccessful. Deputy Bearden requested back-up. Deputy Bearden then quickly followed and caught up with plaintiff. (See Defs.' Mot. for Summ.J. [26] at 3.) Bearden again tripped plaintiff to the ground. Plaintiff stated, ...
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