Jennings v. Hinkle

• Decision Date: 26 March 1993
• Docket Number: No. 13183,13183
• Citation: 851 P.2d 509,115 N.M. 387,1993 NMCA 44
• Parties: Thomas JENNINGS and Richard Maloney, Third-party Plaintiffs/Appellants, v. Kyle HINKLE and Terrell Tucker, Third-Party Defendants/Appellees.
• Court: Court of Appeals of New Mexico

Page 509

851 P.2d 509

115 N.M. 387

Thomas JENNINGS and Richard Maloney, Third-party Plaintiffs/Appellants, v. Kyle HINKLE and Terrell Tucker, Third-Party Defendants/Appellees.

No. 13183.

Court of Appeals of New Mexico.

March 26, 1993.

[115 N.M. 388] Dick A. Blenden, Paine, Blenden & Diamond, Carlsbad, Mary Lynn Bogle, Ernest L. Carroll, Losee, Carson, Haas & Carroll, P.A., Artesia, for third-party plaintiffs/appellants.

Stevan Douglas Looney, Crider, Calvert & Bingham, P.C., Alburquerque, for third-party defendants/appellees.

OPINION

BIVINS, Judge.

This case involves a claim under the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 (1988), against two police officers based on the alleged making of false and misleading affidavits for arrest warrants, and on the alleged giving of false and misleading testimony before a grand jury. Third-party plaintiffs Thomas Jennings and Richard Maloney (Jennings and Maloney) appeal an order granting summary judgment in favor of third-party defendants Kyle Hinkle and Terrell Tucker (Hinkle and Tucker), respectively a Deputy Sheriff and Sheriff of Chaves County at the material times, and dismissing Jennings and Maloney's third-party complaint.

In reviewing the propriety of summary judgment, we determine the existence or non-existence of genuine issues of material fact. Tapia v. Springer Transfer Co., 106 N.M. 461, 462-63, 744 P.2d 1264, 1265-66 (Ct.App.), cert. quashed, 106 N.M. 405, 744 P.2d 180 (1987). To make this determination in this case, we must decide whether qualified immunity protects the police officers from Section 1983 liability when it is alleged that they violated the third-party plaintiffs' constitutional rights by presenting a magistrate with false and misleading affidavits, and by providing a grand jury with false and misleading testimony. We hold that the officers did not violate clearly established law and, thus had qualified immunity from Section 1983 liability. Accordingly, we affirm.

We first will set forth general background information and procedural history, which the parties do not seem to dispute. We next discuss the law applicable to the claim being made, a matter which has not heretofore been decided by the appellate courts of this state. Then we discuss the parties' showings, and the law as applied to those showings.

1. Background and Procedural History

This litigation arose out of an incident on November 14, 1987, involving, among others, Jennings, Maloney, Mike Amador (Amador) and Andy Candelaria (Candelaria). Believing a hunting party consisting of Amador, Candelaria, and others (the Amador party) to be trespassing on private ranch land owned by Jennings' father, Jennings and Maloney stopped the party. An altercation ensued which subsequently led to a civil complaint for damages by members of the party against Jennings, Maloney, and David Alcorn based on alleged assault and battery, false imprisonment, and emotional distress. Alcorn, however, was later dismissed from the suit.

After that lawsuit was filed, Jennings and Maloney filed a third-party complaint. Their complaint alleges that Hinkle, the deputy assigned to investigate the incident of November 14, 1987, secured an arrest warrant based on information which Hinkle knew was false and materially misleading. The third-party complaint also alleges that Hinkle gave false and misleading testimony to the grand jury leading to the indictment of Jennings and Maloney for false imprisonment and two counts of aggravated assault. The third-party complaint alleges that Tucker, as Sheriff, "is responsible for the supervision and the conduct of ... Hinkle." Jennings and Maloney sought monetary relief under Section 1983 based on violation of their civil rights.

2. Discussion

(a) Applicable Law

An arrest by a state law enforcement official made in violation of constitutional protections will give rise to a cause of action under Section 1983. See Monroe v. Pape, 365 U.S. 167, 168-72, 81 S.Ct. 473, 474-76, 5 L.Ed.2d 492 (1961), overruled on other grounds by Monell v. Department of Social Servs., 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978). However, law enforcement officials are qualifiedly immune from suit under Section 1983. They retain the shield of qualified immunity as long as "their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known." Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818, 102 S.Ct. 2727, 2738, 73 L.Ed.2d 396 (1982); see Malley v. Briggs, 475 U.S. 335, 344-45, 106 S.Ct. 1092, 1098, 89 L.Ed.2d 271 (1986) (shield of qualified immunity lost "[o]nly where the warrant application is so lacking in indicia of probable cause as to render official belief in its existence unreasonable." (citation omitted)).

The "clearly established" law at issue here is this: a determination of probable cause cannot stand if it is shown that facts material to that determination were misrepresented or omitted, and that these misrepresentations or omissions were intentional or displayed a reckless disregard for the truth. See State v. Donaldson, 100 N.M. 111, 116-17, 666 P.2d 1258, 1263-64 (Ct.App.) (search warrant deemed sufficient because omissions from supporting affidavit were not material), cert. denied, 100 N.M. 53, 665 P.2d 809 (1983); Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154, 164-72, 98 S.Ct. 2674, 2680-84, 57 L.Ed.2d 667 (1978) (the defendant entitled to hearing on claim that affidavit supporting search warrant contained false statements, provided he could show deliberate material falsehoods or reckless disregard for truth). Additionally, while Donaldson and Franks deal with affidavits for search warrants, Jennings and Maloney contend that these cases "apply with equal force to false and misleading grand jury testimony," relying on Anthony v. Baker, 767 F.2d 657, 663 (10th Cir.1985) (police officer who gives grand jury testimony is not absolutely immune from Section 1983 liability). But cf. Briscoe v. LaHue 60 U.S. 325, 345-46, 103 S.Ct. 1108, 1120-21, 75 L.Ed.2d 96 (1983) (police officers have absolute immunity when testifying at a criminal trial). We assume, without deciding, that this latter contention is correct. See generally Buzbee v. Donnelly, 96 N.M. 692, 696, 634 P.2d 1244, 1248 (1981) (one of grand jury's responsibilities is to determine whether there is probable cause that a person committed a crime). In view of our disposition of the issues presented, we find it unnecessary to resolve in this case the applicability of Franks and Donaldson to grand jury testimony.

Jennings and Maloney argue on appeal that Hinkle (1) violated clearly established law when he (2) deliberately or recklessly omitted information from his affidavits and grand jury testimony that was (3) material to the probable cause determination and, therefore, (4) Hinkle and Tucker are not qualifiedly immune. While they correctly outline the qualified immunity analysis in this case, Jennings and Maloney fail on appeal because they misapply the materiality element of the analysis. They were required to show a substantial probability that the facts omitted from the affidavits, if presented to the magistrate, would have altered the probable cause determination. Donaldson, 100 N.M. at 117, 666 P.2d at 1264. In addition, they must have shown that the facts omitted from the grand jury testimony, had the facts been presented, would have caused the grand jury to vote differently. See State v. Penner, 100 N.M. 377, 379, 671 P.2d 38, 40 (Ct.App.1983) (indictment will not be defeated unless the defendant shows that missing testimony would have changed grand jury's vote). Jennings and Maloney did not make these showings.

(b) The Showings Made by the Parties

The affidavits for arrest warrants for Jennings and Maloney contain a detailed account of Hinkle's investigation, which spanned a period of ten days. The officer interviewed and took taped statements from the principals. Hinkle visited the scene of the affray on at least two occasions, once with members of the Amador party and Ranger Pete Steele of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM); a second time in the company of Steele, Jennings, Maloney, Jennings' brother, and one other person. These trips were to determine whether the incident occurred on private ranch land or public BLM land. Through examination of maps and section markers on the ground, and use of a compass, it was established that the affray took place on public land, thus establishing that the Amador party had a legal right to hunt on the land. Jennings and Maloney do not now dispute that fact. They take the position that when the incident occurred, they, in good faith, believed that Amador and Candelaria were trespassing on private land, and they claim that their belief was substantiated by a BLM map that they had in their possession at the time of the incident.

Hinkle's affidavits disclose that Jennings and Maloney confiscated hunting rifles and wallets from Amador and Candelaria. Amador and Candelaria told Hinkle, according to the affidavits, that sometime between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, November 14, 1987, as they were heading back to their camp on horseback, Jennings, whom they knew, and two other men arrived in a jeep. One of the unidentified men jumped out of the vehicle with a rifle in hand and told the hunters they were on private land, that they had been previously warned, and that he was going to take their guns. According to the affidavits, based on Amador's and Candelaria's statements, Jennings and his companions removed Amador and Candelaria from their horses, took their wallets and rifles, jumped back in the jeep, and left. The next day, Jennings brought the rifles and wallets to the Sheriff's office.

After being warned of his rights, according to the affidavits, Maloney gave a statement in which he admitted to stopping by the Amador camp on the evening of Friday, November 13, 1987, and telling the hunters they had to move. He also...