Ratliff v. Aransas County, No. 19-40121 (5th Cir. 2020)
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After plaintiff was shot five times during an armed confrontation with two sheriff's deputies, he filed a 42 U.S.C. 1983 action alleging that the deputies used unreasonable and excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment.
The Fifth Circuit held that there was no error in the district court's conclusion that plaintiff failed to produce sufficient pleadings to state a Monell claim against the county. In this case, plaintiff failed to establish an official custom or policy of excessive force because the only facts he alleged with any specificity related to his shooting. The court also held that, even if the district court erred by excluding testimony from plaintiff's criminal trial, such error was harmless and the testimony's exclusion was not a basis for reversal. Finally, the court held that the deputies were entitled to qualified immunity where plaintiff failed to meet his burden of establishing a Fourth Amendment violation in the form of unreasonable and excessive force, much less a violation that every reasonable officer in Deputy Scudder's position would appreciate. Accordingly, the court affirmed the district court's judgment in all respects.
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