Ripson v. Alles, s. 93-1972
| Decision Date | 01 June 1994 |
| Docket Number | 93-1974,Nos. 93-1972,s. 93-1972 |
| Citation | 21 F.3d 805 |
| Parties | Michael D. RIPSON, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. John K. ALLES, Defendant-Appellant, Clyde Klave, City of Winterset Police Department, Defendants. Michael D. RIPSON, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. John K. ALLES, Defendant, Clyde Klave, Defendant-Appellant, City of Winterset Police Department, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit |
Henry A. Harmon, Des Moines, IA, argued, for appellant.
Philip H. Dorff, Des Moines, IA, argued, for appellee.
Before WOLLMAN, Circuit Judge, HEANEY, Senior Circuit Judge, and LOKEN, Circuit Judge.
Michael D. Ripson filed suit against police officers John K. Alles and Clyde Klave under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983, alleging violations of his constitutional rights resulting from an alleged unlawful arrest and subsequent imprisonment. Alles and Klave sought summary judgment based on qualified immunity. The district court determined that genuine issues of material fact existed and denied their motions. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand for further proceedings.
On March 21, 1991, Michael Ripson's estranged wife, Melody, contacted the City of Winterset police department to complain that Ripson was sexually abusing their two-year-old daughter. Melody told Assistant Police Chief Alles that several times after visits with Ripson the child had shown signs of redness on her vagina and rectum and had stated "Daddy hurt me" and, when asked where, had answered "my bottom." Alles advised Melody to have a doctor examine her daughter and to furnish him with the medical reports. Melody told Alles that a physician's assistant at Madison County Medical Associates had examined the girl and had acknowledged that there were suspicious conditions that should be reported to Child Protection Services.
Medical notes from Madison County Medical Associates indicate that a physician's assistant examined the girl on March 20, 1991. Melody told him that her daughter had complained of her father hurting her in her vaginal area. The child was relaxed and had no guarding or resistance to the exam. The physician's assistant observed no lesion, redness, or evidence of physical trauma, but notified Child Protective Services and made an appointment for the girl to see Dr. Rizwan Shah. On March 26, 1991, Dr. Shah conducted a sexual assault validation exam on the child. Melody told the doctor that she and Ripson were fighting over custody of their daughter. She stated that after her daughter returned from visits with Ripson she had a reddened genital area and suffered from nightmares. Melody also informed the doctor that Child Protective Services had been contacted but that it would not investigate without documented medical evidence of sexual abuse. The examination revealed no physical evidence of sexual injuries. Because of Melody's reports concerning her daughter's abnormal behavior after visits with her father, Dr. Shah referred the daughter to a psychologist.
After an initial interview on April 4, 1991, the psychologist reported that "[s]ince all of the information obtained was given by [Melody], it [was] difficult to know what [was] actually happening to [the child]." He recommended that Melody seek a court-ordered custody evaluation. He stated that he did not believe that anyone Melody had consulted thus far had found any unequivocal evidence of sexual abuse and that it appeared that a different approach was needed if the question was ever to be put to rest.
According to Ripson, he spoke to Alles in late March or early April and requested that a police officer accompany him to Melody's residence in order to witness her denial of his visitation rights. During this conversation, Alles informed Ripson that his daughter had been examined by doctors and that she was "okay or fine." As the conversation continued, Alles became hostile and threatened to throw Ripson in jail if he attempted to contact Melody or his daughter in any way.
On April 10, 1992, Alles met with the Madison County Attorney, A. Zane Blessum. Alles told Blessum that he was investigating a potential sexual abuse case and asked Blessum to view a video tape prepared by Melody. After viewing the tape, Blessum told Alles to "keep investigating" and suggested the child be examined by Dr. Shah. According to Blessum, "the desired normal procedure or protocol before making an arrest for an alleged sexual assault in Madison County is to determine whether or not any physical evidence exists of the alleged abuse." Police Chief Klave may have been present during this meeting.
The following day, Alles interviewed Jeff Clutter, Melody's live-in boyfriend. Klave was present during the interview. Clutter stated that he had heard the child on several occasions say "Daddy hurts me" and, when asked how, she would point her finger and say "finger" and "bottom." Later that afternoon, Alles arrested Ripson when he came to Melody's home to pick up his daughter. Klave, who had advised Alles to use his own judgment regarding the arrest, was not aware Alles had arrested Ripson until after Ripson was in custody. Klave subsequently notarized the complaint and affidavit, prepared by Alles following the arrest, which charged Ripson with sexual abuse in the second degree. In the affidavit, Alles attested to the following facts "known to [him] or told to [him] by other reliable persons" which formed the basis for his belief that Ripson committed the crime:
[The child] has shown signs on both her vagina and rectal area of abuse. She has told several people including her mother that daddy hurts her. She will hold one finger away from the rest and say Daddy hurts me and when asked how states "finger-bottom" or "finger-fanny."
Madison County Attorney Blessum was "surprised to learn that Mr. Ripson had, in fact, been arrested by [his] officers, approximately 12 hours after [he] informed them to 'keep investigating.' " In a supplemental affidavit, Blessum explained that he did not tell Alles and Klave that probable cause did not exist for an arrest and that he told them to "keep investigating" in order to develop a better case for prosecution.
Ripson appeared before the Madison County Magistrate Judge on April 11, 1991. He did not challenge the judge's probable cause determination. The next day, he posted bond and his counsel appeared before the court and waived a preliminary hearing. On June 25, 1991, the court dismissed the charges upon application by the Madison County Attorney. This suit followed.
Ripson's complaint included the Section 1983 claim, as well as pendent state claims. Following some discovery, defendants moved for summary judgment on the Section 1983 claim based on qualified immunity. 1 The district court denied defendants' motions, finding issues of material fact with respect to this claim.
The Fourth Amendment requires that an officer have probable cause for an arrest. The arresting officer is entitled to qualified immunity, however, if the arrest was objectively reasonable--if a reasonable officer could have believed probable cause existed for the arrest. Hunter v. Bryant, --- U.S. ----, ----, 112 S.Ct. 534, 537, 116 L.Ed.2d 589 (1991). Probable cause existed in the present case if, at the moment Alles arrested Ripson, the facts and circumstances within Alles's knowledge and of which he had reasonably trustworthy information were sufficient to warrant a prudent person in believing Ripson had sexually abused his daughter. See id.
"Whether an official's conduct was objectively reasonable is a question of law and should be decided at the earliest possible stage of litigation." Gorra v. Hanson, 880 F.2d 95, 97 (8th Cir.1989) (citation omitted). If a plaintiff fails to assert a constitutional violation under the law as currently...
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