Mobley v. Bronson, No. 13-11972 (11th Cir. 2015)
Annotate this CasePro se inmate-appellant William Mobley appealed the grant of summary judgment, effectively dismissing his claim of excessive force during an arrest. Mobley was parked in a handicapped parking spot, slouched down in the seat "preparing to smoke crack cocaine." A deputy sheriff of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office was on bicycle patrol when he approached Mobley's car. Mobley did not see the deputy approach the truck, and was unable to see anything that identified the deputy as law enforcement from his slouched position. Fearing he'd be robbed, he dropped the pipe, and keyed his truck's ignition. The deputy reached through the window, grabbed Mobley's shoulder and tried to open the door. While he was still being held by the deputy, Mobley backed quickly out of the parking space, struck the deputy and dragged him approximately 20 feet before the deputy fell clear of the truck. Officers would later catch Mobley after he drove his truck into a small retention pond. When officers subdued him, they struck and kicked Mobley, breaking his nose, teeth and a plastic dental plate. Officers also tased Mobley repeatedly while he was on the ground. Mobley alleged eight officers were involved directly or indirectly in his arrest. Mobley was taken to the hospital, where doctors found that he had a broken nose, cuts and bruises along his arms and hands, and broken front teeth. He later was diagnosed with “Post Traumatic Syndrome” and began suffering seizures. In a state criminal trial arising out of his flight, he was convicted of assaulting the first deputy with a deadly weapon and fleeing to elude arrest and was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment. After review of the trial court record, the Eleventh Circuit found no reversible error as tot the trial court's grant of summary judgment to the officers. Accordingly, the Court affirmed the trial court's decision.
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