Herington v. City of Wichita
| Decision Date | 09 January 2017 |
| Docket Number | Case No. 6:14-cv-01094-JTM |
| Parties | DAWN HERINGTON, Individually and as Mother and Next Friend of B.D.J.L., minor Child and Heir-at-law of TROY LANNING II, Deceased, and as Special Administrator of the Estate of TROY LANNING II, deceased, Plaintiffs, v. CITY OF WICHITA; and RANDY WILLIAMSON, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Kansas |
Plaintiff filed this action after City of Wichita Police Officer Randy Williamson shot and killed Troy Lanning II following a high-speed vehicle pursuit and a chase on foot through a neighborhood. Plaintiff contends the use of deadly force was unjustified. Williamson contends he reasonably believed that Lanning was armed and that he was attempting to point a weapon at him at the time of the shooting. Subsequent investigation showed that Lanning was carrying a bag with several items in it but was not armed at the time of the encounter. The matter is now before the court on summary judgment motions by Williamson and the City of Wichita.
For the reasons set forth herein, the court finds that the defendants are entitled to summary judgment on plaintiff's claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. And in view of the dismissal of all of the federal claims brought by plaintiff, the court concludes it should refrain from exercising jurisdiction over plaintiff's claims based on state law, and that the state claims should be dismissed without prejudice.
At the outset the court notes it has been difficult to determine the uncontroverted facts in this case. The parties' asserted facts and objections are highly contentious, and many of the asserted facts are based on inadmissible hearsay or suffer from other defects. Plaintiff has vigorously challenged a number of defendants' asserted facts, only to include a number of the same facts in her own statement. The court has done its best to determine what facts are uncontroverted and material under the standards of Rule 56.
At the time of the incident, Randy Williamson was 30-years old. He had been a City of Wichita Police Officer for approximately 9 years. On March 31, 2012, at about 11:54 p.m. [23:54 hours], Williamson and two other police units responded to a possible drive-by shooting call on 46th Street south of Charles Street, in Wichita, Kansas. Williamson was about two miles away when he heard the dispatch.
The following is a transcription of the radio broadcast from the police dispatcher.
The radio broadcast differed slightly from the "CAD [Computer Aided Dispatch] Printout" provided contemporaneously to Wichita officers on computer terminals mounted in their patrol vehicles. Included in the CAD entries that night were statements that the "CP [complaining party] ADV[ised] THAT SHE CAN SEE 2 KIDS MESSING WITH VEH[icle]," "THAT SHE JUST HEARD 4-5 GUNSHOTS ON THE NEXT BLOCK OVER," that she "HEARD THEM TOWARDS THE EAST," THAT IT POSS[ibly] SOUNDS LIKE IT CAME FROM A VEH[icle] THAT DROVE BY SPEEDING," which was a "WHITE, 4 DR [door], SEDAN, UNK[nown] TAG." It said the suspects left going east on 45th street, and that "SUSPECT 1 IS H/M [Hispanic male], 16-17 YO[years old]," and "ALL BLACK [clothing of suspect]2 ...DIDN'T SEE VERY WELL." A transmission at midnight [00:00:17] stated "NO WEAPON ..... EMS NOT NEEDED" and shortly thereafter: "VEH[icle] WAS LAST SEEN GOING NORTH ON GLENN."
Williamson approached the area in his marked police vehicle, driving east on 46th Street, arriving several minutes after dispatch reported the possible drive-by shooting. Williamson did not think he would see the suspect vehicle because it was reportedly headed east and then north, and he was coming from the west. At a stop sign at Clarence and 45th, he observed a white four-door SUV turn west onto 45th Street from Glenn, one block east of Charles. As it passed him, Williamson illuminatedthe car with his alley light and saw the silhouettes of several individuals. Williamson thought the driver was a white male with tattoos, black sleeves, and black hair. He did not appear to be a teenager.
Williamson recognized that the car was a white SUV, not a white sedan, but decided to check it out to make sure it was not involved in the shooting. He did so in part because he believed eyewitness reports on such details were often mistaken. He made a u-turn to follow the SUV on 45th Street. The SUV accelerated to about 70 miles per hour on 45th Street towards Meridian Street. The posted speed limit in that area was 30 mph. Williamson concluded the vehicle was attempting to elude him, and he activated his emergency lights and siren as he went through the stop sign at 45th and Meridian. Shortly after this, Williamson was able to get close enough to read the license tag, which he relayed to dispatch. He notified dispatch that the vehicle was fleeing and that he was in pursuit northbound on Meridian approaching MacArthur Street.
Williamson pursued the vehicle at high speeds with his lights and siren activated. He radioed pursuit information during the chase as follows: "Speeds 80, traffic light, occupied five," approximately 25 seconds into the pursuit; "130 MPH, traffic still light" at 66 seconds into pursuit. At three minutes twelve seconds into the pursuit, the dispatcher advised that the vehicle had a stolen license plate. Williamson reported that traffic was moderate and civilian vehicles were pulling over, but the SUV was "weaving in and out" of traffic. For approximately seven minutes, the pursuit continued at high speeds through commercial and residential streets. Other WPD officers responded during the pursuit.
The pursuit ended when the SUV was unable to make a turn at the intersection of Everett Street and 35th Street South. The vehicle attempted to turn left (east), but jumped the curb and came to a stop off the shoulder of 35th Street.
By the time Williamson turned the corner, he saw that the occupants had all exited the vehicle. He saw two people "bailing" and running from the vehicle: a heavy-set white female wearing a hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans; and a white male in a blue t-shirt and light colored pants. The male was running northeast and was carrying a black bag with a reflective stripe on it. The man was later identified as 24-year old Troy Lanning II. The female was eventually identified as Meagan Tindle. 1
Williamson initially remained in his patrol car as he followed Lanning. Lanning turned the corner, running north on the west side of Bennett Street. Williamson drove his vehicle across the front yard of the corner house and stopped in front of 3543 S. Bennett. Lanning turned west on the north side of that address and fled through the side and then the back yard. Williamson got out and pursued Lanning on foot.
Lanning angled towards the southwest as he ran through the backyard of 3543 S. Bennett. Williamson had his handgun in his right hand and his flashlight in his left hand as he illuminated Lanning with the light. Williamson estimated he was aboutthirty feet behind Lanning. He yelled for Lanning to stop. Lanning looked over his shoulder at Williamson but continued his flight, climbing over a privacy fence into the backyard of 3544 S. Everett.
Williamson testified the bag Lanning was carrying appeared to have some weight to it and it made a "thud" against the fence when Lanning climbed over it. Williamson testified that Lanning's failure to abandon the bag and the fact that a drive-by shooting call preceded the chase caused him to worry that Lanning had a gun in the bag.
Williamson went approximately 15-20 feet north of the spot where Lanning climbed over the fence and peered over the fence. He saw Lanning running away from the fence, so Williamson climbed over to pursue him. Lanning started toward the northwest but then ran towards a gate at the southwest corner of the back yard at 3544 S. Everett. He still had the black bag in his right hand. (The approximate path taken by Lanning is depicted on Dkt. 173 at 17).
Lanning slowed almost to a walk as he reached the southwest corner of the back yard of 3544 S. Everett. Williamson approached and repeated his command to Lanning to stop. The owner of the house at 3544 S. Everett, Dale Geist, was looking out into his back yard through a screen door. He saw Lanning running through his yard with an officer in pursuit. Geist heard the officer yelling "stop," and he shut the back door as the man who was fleeing came within ten or fifteen feet of the door. When he did so, he Dkt. 163-10 at 3."2
The following is Williamson's version of the shooting. Williamson testified that Lanning stopped with his body facing away and looked back over his right shoulder at Williamson. Williamson said that despite repeated commands to Lanning to drop the bag and show his hands, he saw Lanning move the bag from his right hand to his left hand and then stick his right hand inside the bag. Lanning rotated to his left (counter-clockwise) with his hand apparently in the bag and began to bring the bag up toward Williamson, with his arms and hands out in front of him. Williamson testified he could see something pressed up against the corner of the bag. He said he believed Lanning...
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