987 F.3d 537
6th Cir.2021Background
- Early morning noise complaint: officers found Jamarco McShann asleep in a locked, running car with his right hand resting on a handgun on his right thigh and music blaring.
- Four officers approached with a planned formation (Knight at driver side with ballistic shield cover; O’Neal with shield; Cornely passenger side; Howard rear with shotgun). They shouted commands to show hands.
- Officers say McShann initially raised his hands, scanned left-to-right, then grabbed the gun and swung it toward the driver-side door where Knight and O’Neal were positioned; Knight and Howard fired, killing McShann.
- Plaintiff’s expert (Jeremy Bauer) opined to a reasonable degree of scientific and biomechanical certainty that McShann’s right hand was raised when shot in the thumb and that the gun showed no damage—suggesting McShann may not have been holding the gun at the moment of the shot.
- District court granted summary judgment for the officers on qualified immunity grounds, finding the use of deadly force objectively reasonable and alternatively excluding Bauer’s report under Daubert.
- Sixth Circuit majority affirmed: viewed officers’ testimony as unrebutted that McShann grabbed and swung the gun, so deadly force was reasonable; dissent would have found a genuine factual dispute created by Bauer’s report and testimonial inconsistencies.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether officers’ use of deadly force violated the Fourth Amendment | Jordan: Bauer’s report + testimonial inconsistencies create a genuine dispute that McShann was not holding/pointing the gun when shot, so deadly force was unreasonable | Officers: testimony uniformly that McShann grabbed and swung the gun toward officers, creating an immediate deadly threat | Held: No constitutional violation; force was objectively reasonable because officers had probable cause to believe McShann posed deadly threat |
| Whether Bauer’s expert created a genuine issue of material fact | Jordan: Bauer opined to a reasonable degree of certainty that gun was not held when hand was shot, so a jury could credit that and reject officers’ account | Officers: Bauer speculated about shot sequence and does not rebut that McShann grabbed the gun and presented a threat; expert cannot supplant eyewitness testimony | Held: Bauer’s opinion insufficient to create a genuine dispute on the pivotal fact (that McShann grabbed/swung the gun) under Boyd precedent |
| Whether qualified immunity protects officers | Jordan: conflicting evidence meant disputed material facts—no entitlement to qualified immunity | Officers: even viewing facts in light most favorable to plaintiff, a reasonable officer could fire when suspect grabbed a gun and swung it | Held: Qualified immunity applies; use of deadly force was reasonable under Garner/Graham framework |
| Admissibility of Bauer’s report under Daubert (alternative district-court ground) | Jordan: report reliable and raised genuine factual dispute | Officers: report speculative and not tied to sequence of shots; district court should exclude | Held: Majority did not need to decide Daubert exclusion; affirmed on merits and noted Boyd makes expert speculation insufficient (district court had also excluded in the alternative) |
Key Cases Cited
- Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985) (deadly force constitutionally reasonable only if officer has probable cause to believe suspect poses serious threat)
- Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989) (Fourth Amendment reasonableness judged from perspective of reasonable officer on scene)
- Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharm., 509 U.S. 579 (1993) (trial courts gatekeep expert testimony for reliability and relevance)
- Boyd v. Baeppler, 215 F.3d 594 (6th Cir. 2000) (speculative expert opinion insufficient to create genuine factual dispute on use-of-force sequencing)
- King v. Taylor, 694 F.3d 650 (6th Cir. 2012) (forensic and expert evidence can create genuine dispute about whether decedent pointed a gun at officers)
- Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800 (1982) (qualified immunity shields officials unless they violate clearly established rights)