Galarnyk v. Fraser, No. 11-3065 (8th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CaseMinnesota State Patrol Captain Thomas Fraser detained Plaintiff at the site of the collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Plaintiff, an experienced bridge and construction safety consultant, discussed the cause of the collapse with the media at the time of the collapse. Later, Plaintiff went to the site to investigate. Fraser turned Plaintiff over the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD). An MPD officer handcuffed Plaintiff and transported him to the police department. Plaintiff was released later that night. Plaintiff sued Fraser and others asserting, among other things, false arrest and First Amendment retaliatory arrest claims. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Fraser. The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed, holding (1) the district court did not err in finding no constitutional violation in Plaintiff's arrest; and (2) the district court did not err in concluding that the presence of probable cause to arrest Defendant for trespass defeated his First Amendment retaliatory arrest claim.
Court Description: Civil case - civil rights. The facts and circumstances presented to defendant Fraser when he encountered plaintiff at the restricted collapse site of the I-35W bridge provided probable cause to arrest plaintiff for trespass; as a result, Fraser was entitled to qualified immunity on plaintiff's false arrest claim; existence of probable cause is fatal to plaintiff's claim that he was arrested in retaliation for asserting his First Amendment rights
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