Joseph v. Allen, et al, No. 12-2411 (8th Cir. 2013)
Annotate this CasePlaintiff appealed the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of arresting officers on Fourth Amendment claims he brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1983. The court concluded that the officers had probable cause to arrest plaintiff, and the district court did not err in concluding that they were entitled to qualified immunity on his false arrest claim; pursuant to Kurtz v. City of Shrewbury, plaintiff's allegation of malicious prosecution could not sustain a valid claim under section 1983; even if Kurtz did not preclude the malicious prosecution claim, summary judgment in favor of the officers nonetheless would be proper because the record showed that the officers had probable cause to arrest plaintiff and initiate a criminal prosecution; and the district court properly granted summary judgment on plaintiff's state law claims for false arrest and malicious prosecution. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment.
Court Description: Civil case - Civil rights. Challenge to timeliness of defendants' assertion of their qualified immunity defense was raised for the first time on appeal and was waived; based on what they had observed and were told at the scene, officers had probable cause to arrest Joseph and the district court did not err in concluding the officers were entitled to qualified immunity on his false arrest claim; an allegation of malicious prosecution without more cannot sustain a civil rights claim under Section 1983; under Missouri law a plaintiff must establish the absence of probable cause for arrest or prosecution in order to state a claim for false arrest or malicious prosecution, and the district court did not err in granting summary judgment on Joseph's state law claims. [ April 12, 2013
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