Stephen Hoffmeyer v. Michael Porter, 758 F.3d 1065

Hoffmeyer and Wichlan, sue under §1983 for false arrest and retaliation against Water Patrol Officers Porter and Belote.
On June 21, 2009, Hoffmeyer was arrested for peace disturbance after shouting at Porter on Hoffmeyer’s houseboat; Wichlan was arrested for peace disturbance and resisting arrest.
Charges were later dropped.
A partial summary judgment in Hoffmeyer’s favor on false arrest liability was granted, but later vacated after trial.
A jury found for the officers on both claims, Hoffmeyer and Wichlan moved for a new trial, which the district court denied, and the district court’s vacatur of the partial summary judgment was challenged on appeal.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the district court erred in vacating the partial summary judgment	Hoffmeyer/Wichlan contend error in vacatur of summary judgment on probable cause.	Officers argue issue not reviewable on appeal due to lack of preservation.	No reversible error; issue not preserved for review.
Whether the denial of a new trial was an abuse of discretion	New trial needed to prevent miscarriage due to tainted proceedings.	District court did not abuse discretion; no miscarriage shown.	No abuse of discretion; denial affirmed.

Eaddy v. Yancey, 317 F.3d 914 (8th Cir. 2003) (Rule 50(a) preservation requirement for JMOL)
Unitherm Food Sys., Inc. v. Swift-Eckrich, Inc., 546 U.S. 394 (S. Ct. 2006) (post-judgment JMOL standards governed by Unitherm)
Linden v. CNH Am., LLC, 673 F.3d 829 (8th Cir. 2012) (limits post-judgment challenges to sufficiency of evidence)
Giordano v. Lee, 434 F.2d 1227 (8th Cir. 1970) (probable cause for arrest questions for the jury if facts are genuinely in dispute)
Hallmark Cards, Inc. v. Murley, 703 F.3d 456 (8th Cir. 2013) (standard of review for new-trial motions; miscarriage of justice test)
E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. v. Berkley & Co., 620 F.2d 1247 (8th Cir. 1980) (denial of new trial requires substantial rights affected)