The Mercury News

Justices are petitioned on police officers’ legal immunity

- By Matthew Barakat

ARLINGTON, VA. >> James King had no idea that the men who grabbed him and took his wallet were plaincloth­es officers looking for a fugitive. So he ran off. And when they caught him, he took a monstrous beating.

Bystanders also were confused. One called 911 to report the beating, telling a dispatcher: “They’re going to kill this man.”

King, 27, was a college student at Grand Valley State in Michigan in 2014 when he was beaten. He sued the officers who arrested him, but a judge tossed out the case, ruling that the officers were entitled to immunity for their actions.

King’s case is one of several taken up by the Arlington-based Institute for Justice in an effort to get the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider the “qualified immunity” doctrine, which frequently shields police officers and other government agents from lawsuits when they are accused of violating a person’s constituti­onal rights.

“The biggest problem is, these doctrines have no basis in the history of this country,” said Anya Bidwell, one of King’s lawyers with the institute. “They are inconsiste­nt with our founding principles.”

The qualified immunity doctrine was first enunciated by the Supreme Court in 1967, and expanded greatly by the court in the 1980s. As it currently stands, officers can only be held liable for their actions if a court has previously found officers liable in an analogous circumstan­ce, Bidwell said.

The institute also has petitioned the high court to take the case of Shaniz West, whose home in Caldwell, Idaho, was destroyed by officers looking for her ex-boyfriend. They hope to learn as soon as later this month whether the justices will review the cases.

One of the officers sued by King is an FBI agent who was participat­ing in a federal-local task force in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The FBI and a Grand Rapids spokesman declined comment. A spokeswoma­n for the City of Caldwell did not respond to an email seeking comment.

In a phone interview, King said he feels lucky to be alive after being beaten by officers who seemed unfazed by the fact that bystanders were witnessing the attack in broad daylight. He said one of his lawyers told him that if he’d been black, he would have been killed.

“I thought I was going to be killed,” he said. “And there are people all over the country who deal with this on a daily basis.”

King was charged with resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer. Court records indicate he bit one of the officers who had him in a chokehold. A jury acquitted King on all charges.

Justices have signaled some interest in the topic. In 2017, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the court should find an appropriat­e case to reconsider the doctrine. As with other elements of criminal justice reform, a left-right coalition of liberals concerned about police abuse and conservati­ves concerned about unaccounta­ble government has emerged to agitate for change.

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