Brook Bernini v. City of St. Paul, 2012 U.S. App. LEXIS 781

32 plaintiffs brought §1983 claims against the City of St. Paul and five officers for First and Fourth Amendment violations arising from RNC events in St. Paul on September 1, 2008.
Team 36 positioned at Shepard Road intersections to block downtown entry after downtown closure was ordered; approximately 11 officers at each intersection.
A group of about 100 at the Jackson Street intersection began crossing toward officers; officers deployed stinger blast balls and non-lethal munitions as the group moved west.
Crowd expanded westward to about 400 in a park where officers encircled them, announced arrests, and detained or booked roughly 160 people; 200 were released.
Video evidence shows some individuals were detained while officers identified who belonged to the initial intersection unit; others were arrested, with charges later dismissed.
District court granted summary judgment to officers and City; plaintiffs appeal seeking reversal of as to five officers and the City.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether mass arrests in the park violated Fourth Amendment	Plaintiffs contend only subset had probable cause; mass arrest unlawfully seized non-targeted individuals.	Officers acted under arguable probable cause that the group at the intersection acted as a unit to access downtown.	Qualified immunity; arrests of 160 were reasonable under circumstances.
Whether use of non-lethal munitions constituted excessive force	Henry's authorization of force subjected subordinates to unconstitutional conduct.	Force was reasonable to prevent disruption and moving crowd away from danger; no clearly established right violated.	Henry entitled to qualified immunity; force reasonable under Fourth Amendment.
Whether plaintiffs showed First Amendment retaliation	Arrests were motivated by protected speech at the intersection.	Arrests were based on unlawful conduct, not protected speech; no singled-out retaliation shown.	District court correct; no submissible retaliation claim against officers.
Whether the City can be liable under Monell for policy decisions	Neuberger had final policymaking authority; City liable for his actions.	Neuberger lacked final policymaking authority; City not liable absent a policy; authority layered under city ordinances.	City not liable; Neuberger did not have final policymaking authority.

Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800 (1982) (qualified immunity framework for officials)
Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223 (2009) (permissible to analyze either prong of qualified immunity at discretion)
Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372 (2007) (view facts in light most favorable on summary judgment)
Carr v. District of Columbia, 587 F.3d 401 (D.C. Cir. 2009) (crowd policing and grounds for arrest of unit members in large gatherings)
Illinois v. Wardlow, 528 U.S. 119 (2000) (detention possible to resolve ambiguity during investigatory stops)