159 F. Supp. 3d 1130
N.D. Cal.2016Background
- On Dec. 31, 2011 Gary Lawman was removed from the Four Seasons Hotel by SFPD officers after hotel staff described him as refusing to leave and acting "weird." Officers arrested him for public intoxication (Cal. Penal Code §647(f)).
- Officer Gordon completed a Public Intoxication Report asserting signs of alcohol intoxication (odor, droopy eyelids, slurred speech); hotel staff (Rodie, Flores) and a cellmate disputed those observations and said they did not smell alcohol and Lawman walked steadily to the van.
- Lawman was held in a sobering cell at County Jail 1 for the required period, triaged by nurse Latko (who recorded no urgent medical condition), observed periodically, and released around 1:40 a.m.; later that day Lawman was injured in a traffic collision causing severe TBI.
- Lawman alleges (1) §1983 Fourth Amendment wrongful arrest and Monell municipal liability; (2) §1983 Fourteenth Amendment deliberate-indifference claim (conceded and dismissed by plaintiff); (3) ADA claims against CCSF; (4) Cal. Gov. Code §845.6 claim (failure to summon medical care against certain jail personnel); (5) Bane Act, negligence, and false arrest/imprisonment claims.
- Defendants moved for summary judgment on multiple grounds; the court denied summary judgment as to the Fourth Amendment wrongful arrest and Monell claims (and related punitive damages as to two officers), but granted summary judgment on ADA failure-to-accommodate claim, §845.6 claim, Bane Act claim, negligence claim, and as to several individual defendants. Plaintiff's motion to amend to add a Fourth Amendment failure-to-render-medical-care claim was denied as futile.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether arrest was supported by probable cause for public intoxication | Gordon lacked probable cause because witnesses contradicted his intoxication observations; a jury should decide credibility | Officers had probable cause based on Gordon's observations documented in the Public Intoxication Report | Denied summary judgment — disputed facts (witnesses vs. Gordon) create triable issue on probable cause and qualified immunity denied on that basis |
| Whether defendants can rely on trespass theory to justify arrest | Lawman said he lacked discovery notice of trespass theory and would be prejudiced | Defendants cited CAD and report language referring to "trespass" | Court refused to consider trespass theory at summary judgment because defendants' interrogatory response improperly failed to disclose the theory |
| Monell municipal-liability claim (policy/practice re: wrongful §647(f) arrests) | CCSF maintained a custom/practice of streamlining §647(f) arrests and failing to require screening (OCC complaints, nurse Latko's testimony, lack of breath testing) | Complaints alone are insufficient proof of a custom; no context for complaint rates; OCC recommendation was non-binding | Denied summary judgment — evidence (numerous OCC complaints plus Latko testimony and failure to implement OCC recommendation) creates a triable issue of an informal policy/practice |
| ADA wrongful-arrest and failure-to-accommodate claims | Lawman has bipolar disorder; officers knew or should have known he was disabled and arrested him for conduct related to disability; CCSF failed to accommodate by providing medical/mental-health care | CCSF argued officers lacked knowledge of any disability and Lawman did not request accommodation or show need for immediate care | ADA wrongful-arrest theory survives summary judgment (triable issue whether officers knew/should have known of disability); ADA failure-to-accommodate (medical care) claim dismissed — no evidence defendants knew he needed immediate care |
Key Cases Cited
- Monell v. Dep't of Soc. Servs. of City of N.Y., 436 U.S. 658 (1978) (municipal liability requires a policy, custom, or practice causing constitutional violation)
- Connick v. Thompson, 563 U.S. 51 (2011) (limits municipal liability to municipality's own policies or customs)
- Sheehan v. City & County of San Francisco, 743 F.3d 1211 (9th Cir. 2014) (ADA applies to arrests; wrongful-arrest and reasonable-accommodation theories)
- Tatum v. City & County of San Francisco, 441 F.3d 1090 (9th Cir. 2006) (post-arrest failure-to-render-medical-care claims analyzed under Fourth Amendment; objective-reasonableness standard)
- Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800 (1982) (qualified immunity standard)
- Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S. 194 (2001) (two-step qualified immunity analysis)
- City of Revere v. Massachusetts Gen. Hosp., 463 U.S. 239 (1983) (government must provide medical care to persons injured while apprehended)
- Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989) (excessive force claims governed by Fourth Amendment objective-reasonableness)
- Maddox v. City of Los Angeles, 792 F.2d 1408 (9th Cir. 1986) (officers must promptly summon medical attention for injured arrestees)