Swearingen v. Judd, No. 18-1126 (8th Cir. 2019)
Annotate this CaseAfter police shot and killed a suspect, the administrators of the decedent's estate filed suit against the officer who fired the fatal shots, alleging that the officer violated the decedent's constitutional rights by using unreasonable force. The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment and held that the officer was entitled to qualified immunity because his use of force, even if just over the line of reasonableness, violated a clearly established right. In this case, the officer was suddenly confronted, at a distance of only three feet, with a suspect who was armed with a knife after ignoring multiple commands to drop it.
Court Description: Colloton, Author, with Smith, Chief Judge, and Erickson, Circuit Judge] Civil case - Civil rights. At the time of the police shooting in question, it was not clearly established that a police officer was forbidden to discharge his firearm when suddenly confronted in close quarters by a noncompliant suspect armed with a knife, and the district court did not err in granting the police officer's motion for summary judgment based on qualified immunity. Judge Erickson, concurring in the judgment.
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