qualified immunity News

Conn. Supreme: No Immunity for Negligent Operation of Emergency Vehicles

The Connecticut Supreme Court has overturned a trial court and ruled that municipalities and government agencies are not entitled to qualified immunity for negligent operation of emergency vehicles. In a case involving a car accident caused by a Bloomfield police …

Insurance a Major Factor in Law Enforcement Civil Rights Settlements

Municipalities, their insurers and risk pools should be heeding the current public re-examination of police and prosecutorial actions taking place across the country, according to an insurance policyholder attorney who works on civil rights cases. Attorney Alexander Brown sees the …

Shot by Police, Thwarted by Judges and Geography

FORT WORTH, Texas — When David Collie slipped off his shirt as he set out one sultry night to visit some friends, he didn’t know he was putting himself in grave danger. But he was. He now fit the description: …

Supreme Court Rejects Appeals Over Police ‘Qualified Immunity’

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to take up a new test of “qualified immunity,” rejecting several appeals that challenged the legal doctrine that has become a broad liability shield for police officers accused of civil rights violations. Qualified immunity has …

U.S. Court Vacates Qualified Immunity in Excessive Force Case of 5 Police Officers

A federal appeals court has vacated part of a finding that cleared five West Virginia police officers on qualified immunity grounds in an excessive force lawsuit, which was filed by the estate of a homeless black man shot 22 times. …

Five States Affected by Federal Appeals Court Restriction on Police Use of Stun Guns

Police should not use stun guns on people who try to evade custody but pose no safety risk to the officers or others, a federal appeals court decided in a ruling that will affect law enforcement procedures in five states. …