Allen v. Cisneros, No. 15-20264 (5th Cir. 2016)
Annotate this CasePlaintiff filed suit against Sergeant Cisneros and Officer Montelongo, among others, under 42 U.S.C. 1983, alleging that the officers violated his constitutional rights. Plaintiff participated in several demonstrations throughout the City of Houston that led to his detention and arrest by police officers. The district court denied the officers’ motion for summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds. The court concluded that the district court erred in holding that Officer Montelongo is not entitled to qualified immunity because the genuine factual dispute identified by the court - whether plaintiff had entered the roadway - is not material to the determination of qualified immunity. Plaintiff's possession of his shofar independently provided reasonable suspicion for his detention. The court also concluded that the district court erred in denying qualified immunity to Sergeant Cisneros. In this case, neither of the remaining factual disputes identified by the district court - whether plaintiff complied with Sergeant Cisneros’ orders and whether plaintiff remained bound by Sergeant Cisneros’ prior orders - is material for determining whether Sergeant Cisneros is entitled to qualified immunity for his detention and subsequent arrest of plaintiff. Sergeant Cisneros had a lawful reason for detaining plaintiff independent of any potential failure to comply by plaintiff. Accordingly, the court reversed and remanded for entry of judgment for the officers.
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