qualified immunity
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10th Circuit grants immunity to Elbert County sergeant for shooting unarmed man
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The federal appeals court based in Denver ruled on Thursday that an Elbert County sheriff’s employee cannot be held liable for shooting an unarmed man who startled him. Joel Hernandez sued Sgt. Mike Skalisky for excessive force for shooting him at the Kiowa Industrial Park in March 2021. In response, Skalisky invoked qualified immunity, which…
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10th Circuit grants immunity to Grand Junction, Mesa County officers who fatally shot man 16 times
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The federal appeals court based in Denver ruled last week that Grand Junction and Mesa County law enforcement officers could not be held liable for shooting and killing an allegedly mentally ill man in his driveway. The widow of Steve Alire sued multiple officers, plus the city and county themselves, for excessive force. The defendants…
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10th Circuit reinstates constitutional rights lawsuit against Douglas County child welfare workers
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The federal appeals court based in Denver reinstated a father’s lawsuit on Thursday against two Douglas County child welfare workers, who allegedly violated his constitutional rights in their investigation of suspected child abuse. A three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit noted a trial judge had previously dismissed the lawsuit…
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Federal judge sides with Denver officer in man’s excessive force lawsuit
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A federal judge concluded on Friday that a Denver officer did not violate a man’s clearly established constitutional rights by using excessive force during a physical confrontation at a downtown hotel. Officer Michael Pineda attempted to arrest Nicholas Munden at The Art Hotel after staff received complaints about his behavior. Munden resisted and Pineda ended…
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Federal judge green-lights trial over arrest of protester at Denver mayor’s 2019 inauguration
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A federal judge indicated on Monday that it is a jury’s role to decide whether Denver police officers violated a woman’s rights by arresting her for disrupting the inauguration ceremony of then-Mayor Michael Hancock in 2019. U.S. District Court Senior Judge William J. Martínez found the officers had not performed a clearly unconstitutional seizure of Caryn…
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Lawyer’s failure to cite facts prompts 10th Circuit to toss excessive force case
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The federal appeals court based in Colorado agreed last week that police officers from Littleton, Englewood and Denver cannot be held liable for killing one person and partially paralyzing another because the plaintiffs’ lawyer failed to cite any facts of the case while appealing a trial judge’s decision. During a late-night vehicle chase across multiple…
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Susan Prose talks about surprises, self-represented plaintiffs and settlements in first year as magistrate judge
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U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan Prose, speaking about her first year as a federal judge on Thursday, described multiple eye-opening experiences on the bench, including the revelation that some litigants are not actually seeking a speedy trial. “I’ve been surprised to see how frequently folks actually don’t want to go to trial. It’s not just defendants…
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10th Circuit agrees Saguache County jail supervisor can be held liable for detainee’s suicide
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The federal appeals court based in Denver agreed on Wednesday that a jury should decide whether a Saguache County jail supervisor is liable for failing to prevent the death of a suicidal detainee. Last year, a trial judge declined to grant immunity to Capt. Kenneth Wilson for the November 2019 suicide of Jackson Maes in…
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10th Circuit grants immunity to Aurora officers who killed machete-wielding man
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The federal appeals court based in Denver ruled last week that four Aurora police officers committed no constitutional violation by shooting and killing a man with alleged mental illness who charged at them while holding a machete. Initially, a trial judge green-lit the excessive force case for trial after determining a jury could find the…
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10th Circuit agrees no immunity for Colorado Springs officers in illegal arrest lawsuit
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The federal appeals court based in Denver agreed with a trial judge on Tuesday that a jury must decide whether two Colorado Springs police officers unlawfully arrested and searched a woman who, moments prior, helped resuscitate a man who had stopped breathing from a drug overdose. Officers Christopher Pryor and Robert McCafferty argued U.S. District…