Sherry Wilkerson v. City of Akron, Ohio
906 F.3d 477
| 6th Cir. | 2018Background
- Off-duty officer Vaughn saw a disabled SUV, later saw Rauphael Thomas and Jesse Gray nearby and called for a unit to check two suspicious persons.
- Officer Danzy arrived, activated lights, spoke briefly with Thomas and Gray; Danzy perceived Thomas as nervous and "blading" (turning to conceal a sidearm) and ordered a stop and frisk.
- A physical struggle ensued when officers tried to control Thomas; during the fight Thomas’s concealed .25-caliber pistol discharged once while wrestled on the ground.
- Thomas ran; Danzy chased and fired two shots, striking Thomas; Thomas later died at the hospital.
- Plaintiff Wilkerson (Thomas’s mother/estate) sued under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (unlawful stop and frisk, excessive force, deliberate indifference to medical needs), and asserted state-law assault/battery and wrongful-death claims; the district court denied summary judgment to Danzy on the stop/frisk claim but granted summary judgment for Danzy on the shooting and deliberate-indifference claims.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Validity of Terry stop and frisk | Stop was unlawful: Danzy lacked specific, articulable suspicion based on objective facts | Danzy had reasonable suspicion from Vaughn’s radio report and Thomas’s demeanor/blading | Denied qualified immunity for the stop; jury question remains whether reasonable suspicion existed |
| Excessive/deadly force in shooting | Shooting unreasonable because Thomas’s gun may have discharged accidentally and he posed no threat while fleeing | Danzy reasonably believed Thomas posed immediate deadly threat after gun discharge and during flight | Granted qualified immunity for the shooting; use of deadly force was reasonable under the circumstances |
| Deliberate indifference to medical needs | Officers delayed or failed to secure timely medical care after shooting | Officers immediately summoned medics and attempted to expedite care; any delay not caused by them | Granted qualified immunity: no deliberate indifference shown |
| Municipal liability (City/Police Dept.) | Policies or practices caused unconstitutional stop/force/medical indifference | Underlying constitutional violations not established; no policy-based causation | Rejected municipal liability because underlying claims failed on the merits |
Key Cases Cited
- Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800 (establishes qualified immunity standard)
- Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1 (authorizes brief stop and limited frisk based on reasonable suspicion)
- Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (limits deadly force against fleeing suspects absent probable cause of serious harm)
- Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (objective-reasonableness standard for excessive-force claims)
- District of Columbia v. Wesby, 138 S. Ct. 577 (proof needed that a reasonable officer would conclude criminal conduct occurred)
- Northrup v. City of Toledo Police Dep’t, 785 F.3d 1129 (summary-judgment review of qualified immunity in Sixth Circuit)
- Beauchamp, 659 F.3d 560 (context on walking away/refusal not automatically supplying reasonable suspicion)
- Livermore ex rel. Rohm v. Lubelan, 476 F.3d 397 (Sixth Circuit on deadly-force analysis)