Valderrama v. Rousseau, No. 13-15752 (11th Cir. 2015)
Annotate this CaseIn 2006, Detective Carl Rousseau of the Miami-Dade County Police Department stopped a vehicle driven by Ricardo Garcia. During the traffic stop, Detective Rousseau shot Garcia’s passenger, Roberto Valderrama, in the genitals. After he was shot, Valderrama was arrested for possession of cocaine and drug paraphernalia, although the charges ultimately were dropped. This appeal stemmed from a civil lawsuit Valderrama filed against Detective Rousseau and two other officers involved in his arrest, Sergeants Yasmina Smith and Braulio Gonzalez. Valderrama brought claims under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against the officers for excessive use of force, false arrest, and deliberate indifference to his serious medical need, as well as other claims under state law. The officers moved for summary judgment based on qualified immunity and state law sovereign immunity. The district court granted in part and denied in part their motions, and the officers appealed. With regard to Sergeant Gonzalez, the Eleventh Circuit reversed the district court’s denial of summary judgment on the 1983 claims and the state law claim for false arrest. As to Sergeant Smith and Detective Rousseau, the Court reversed the district court’s denial of summary judgment on the 1983 claim for violations of Valderrama’s Fourth Amendment rights and the state law claim for false arrest; however, the Court affirmed the denial of summary judgment on the 1983 claim for violation of Valderrama’s Fourteenth Amendment rights based on deliberate indifference to his serious medical need. Finally, the Court dismissed the portion of the appeal related to Valderrama’s state law conspiracy and concert of action claims for lack of appellate jurisdiction.
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