Montoya v. City of Flandreau, et al., No. 11-1787 (8th Cir. 2012)
Annotate this CasePlaintiff brought an action under 42 U.S.C. 1983 against defendants alleging, among other claims, that officers used excessive force against her in violation of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. On appeal, plaintiff challenged the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Officer Justin Hooper. Officer Hooper performed a "leg sweep" on plaintiff while trying to stop her from striking her boyfriend. The court concluded that there were genuine issues of material fact as to whether Officer Hooper used excessive force against plaintiff based on the physical distance between plaintiff and her boyfriend at the time of the incident, the nature of the crime at issue (disorderly conduct), and the degree of the injury suffered. The court also reversed the district court's grant of summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds where the right Officer Hooper allegedly violated was clearly established at the time of the misconduct. Accordingly, the court reversed the judgment of the district court and remanded for further proceedings.
Court Description: Civil case - Civil rights. The district court erred in granting defendant police officer's motion for summary judgment on plaintiff's claim that the officer used excessive force during her arrest as the court could not say, based on the physical distance between plaintiff and the party she was arguing with, the nature of the crime at issue and the degree of injury plaintiff suffered, that the officer's use of force was objectively reasonable as a matter of law; further, the officer was not entitled to qualified immunity as plaintiff alleged sufficient facts to show a violation of her clearly established constitutional right to be free from excessive force; reversed and remanded for further proceedings. [ February 22, 2012
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