A federal judge has once again dismissed the claims of a woman who sued several Mesa County sheriff’s deputies involved in a SWAT operation that reportedly caused over $50,000 in damage to her home.

Last year, U.S. District Court Judge William J. Martínez granted qualified immunity to the officers in response to Patricia Cuervo’s allegations of an unreasonable search under the Fourth Amendment. He also concluded the damage to Cuervo’s home “falls within the scope of police power” and dismissed her related constitutional claim.

Martínez ultimately permitted Cuervo to refile her unlawful search allegations with more specific information that would indicate a Fourth Amendment violation. However, the judge found last week that the latest version of Cuervo’s lawsuit again failed to show how the individual officers or the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office itself were liable.

“Plaintiff states that she ‘took to heart the Court’s admonishment,'” Martínez wrote in an Oct. 4 order. “Her statement, however, rings hollow.”

Cuervo, who now lives in Las Vegas, identified 17 sheriff’s personnel who allegedly contributed to the unspecified damage to her home on March 11, 2018. That day, police obtained a search warrant in Eagle County for Cuervo’s property. Her son, Jason Cuervo, had stolen a 2.5-ton “Sno-Cat” vehicle from Minturn. Multiple bystanders called in to report seeing it on the road.

Two deputies visited Patricia Cuervo’s home in the evening. No one answered the door, but they reportedly believed someone was inside the house. An affidavit submitted in support of the search warrant declared the Sno-Cat “is inside of this residence.”

Just before midnight, according to Cuervo’s lawsuit, Mesa County and Grand Junction law enforcement executed a no-knock entry, using “chemical shells” and munitions that damaged the house. No one was home at the time, but the officers found the Sno-Cat in the garage.

Cuervo deemed the search unreasonable because there was no reason for police to enter the portions of her property where the Sno-Cat could not feasibly be located. She also alleged the damage to her windows and doors resulted in “the additional loss of property from looting.”

Lawyers for the officers argued in favor of dismissing the amended complaint, believing Cuervo had failed to allege what each defendant did to specifically violate her rights. Cuervo countered the sheriff’s department had not created any after-action reports or documented which deputies actually used force in the operation.

Martínez declined to analyze whether the sheriff’s deputies violated Cuervo’s Fourth Amendment rights. Assuming they did, he found they were still entitled to qualified immunity, which shields government employees from civil liability unless they violate a person’s clearly-established legal rights. Cuervo had not pointed to prior court decisions establishing property destruction is unreasonable when police execute a protective sweep of a home to locate a suspect who is believed to be dangerous.

“Plaintiff does not address these facts, which are highly pertinent to the necessity of a protective sweep,” Martínez wrote.

He also noted Patricia Cuervo had not supplied any allegations suggesting the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office had informal customs, official policies or decisions of its policymakers that were the source of her Fourth Amendment violation. Therefore, she could not hold the government liable, either.

Martínez dismissed Cuervo’s lawsuit again, this time without the ability to refile.

The case is Cuervo v. Sorenson et al.