A federal judge directed a plaintiff to revise his allegations on Wednesday to more precisely state what two Denver officers and the city itself allegedly did to violate his constitutional rights by facilitating his prosecution for murder until prosecutors dropped the charges.

Stephan Long faced two counts of murder after he fatally shot two men in a road rage encounter in June 2023. Although Long asserted that he acted in self-defense — and that it was clearly self-defense at the time — the Denver District Attorney’s Office did not fully dismiss the charges for more than a year.

Because prosecutors enjoy broad immunity from civil liability for their actions, Long sued Detective Adam Lucero and Officer Daniel Meadows for facilitating his arrest and prosecution. He pointed to a probable cause statement drafted soon after his arrest that omitted key information that would have allegedly placed murder charges “completely outside the realm of reality.”

After the city and the officers moved to dismiss the claims against them, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Daniel D. Domenico held a Sept. 9 hearing to sort out the exact contours of Long’s claims. Unlike other cases in which false or omitted information in probable cause statements was relevant to the issuance of an arrest warrant, Domenico observed that it was unclear whether the statement authored by Meadows played a role in Long’s prosecution.

“I understand the big-picture complaint that your client has,” said Domenico. “That he was involved in this. That he acted in self-defense. Ultimately, the district attorney agreed with that conclusion, but it took much longer from his perspective than it should have. I understand that. … Help me understand why these two defendants should be responsible for that.”

As alleged, Long was driving northbound on Interstate 25 in heavy traffic on June 13, 2023. His wife and children were driving separately alongside him. Near the 8th Avenue exit, the driver of another car allegedly grew aggressive toward Long. Long attempted to exit, but stopped on the ramp due to the traffic.

Brothers Damon and Blake Lucas, who were in the other vehicle, blocked Long’s car. He allegedly saw one of the brothers rummage in the back seat for something, pull a hoodie over his head, and run toward Long’s car to attack him. The man began assaulting Long, after which Long shot his assailant with a gun.

The other Lucas brother then ran toward Long and assaulted him. Long attempted to drive away, but the assailant held onto the car and grabbed Long and the steering wheel. Long then shot the man. Both brothers died.

Police quickly arrested Long without incident.

“The Plaintiff was in fear for his life. The Plaintiff did not know who the men were, what kind of weapons they were armed with, if they were going to kill him, kill his family, or if they were going to steal his vehicle,” wrote attorney Zachary D. Warren in Long’s civil complaint. “The Plaintiff reasonably and emphatically believed that if he did not take action to defend himself, the men were going to kill him.”

Lucero interviewed Long in custody, after which Meadows wrote the probable cause statement for murder. Warren told Domenico that, months later, a state judge determined Lucero had violated Long’s Miranda rights during the interrogation. In late 2023, then-District Attorney Beth McCann dismissed one of the murder charges, then dismissed the other in August 2024 based on Long’s assertion of self-defense.

Long sued the officers and the city for unlawful arrest and due process violations. He also claimed a violation of his equal protection rights, alleging his status as a Black man was a key factor in the decision to pursue his prosecution. Eleven Denver City Council members had raised similar concerns in a letter to McCann.

The defendants moved to dismiss the lawsuit, arguing that police had probable cause to suspect him of murder, and the probable cause statement acknowledged Long’s assertions that he acted in self-defense.

During the hearing, Domenico struggled to understand the window where the alleged constitutional violations occurred.

“I probably agree with you. It seems like a very good self-defense case and it seems like in many ways that was clear from fairly early on,” he told Warren. “But people can disagree with that, it seems like. And it seems that the district attorney disagreed with that for a while.”

Long is potentially “finding a way to sue the people who don’t have absolute immunity, when really your complaint is about the people who do,” Domenico added, referring to the district attorney’s office.

Warren responded that he did not have the full details of Long’s criminal case because it was sealed in state court. He added that Long took no issue with how police responded and detained him while they tried to determine what happened.

Instead, the murder case “was doggedly pursued by officers who decided to pick and choose which evidence they were going to introduce and frame the case,” Warren said.

“But by days afterward,” said Domenico, “and certainly by the next year, ‘they’ is now the district attorney. It’s not these individuals. The district attorney is the one who’s keeping the case alive.”

True, responded Warren, but early on there was likely “enough information that any reasonable officer would view as obviously” indicative of self-defense.

Domenico directed Warren to obtain the criminal case file and amend Long’s complaint with as many facts about the officer defendants’ involvement as possible. He invited Warren to seek an order from him if the state court does not allow access.

The case is Long v. Meadows et al.