White v. City of Chicago
2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 13326
| 7th Cir. | 2016Background
- Operation Blue Knight (2008–2010) used confidential informants and surveillance to make a covert heroin purchase on July 31, 2010; a NAGIS report summarized officers’ observations and the informant’s buy and ID of Vonzell White and his brother.
- Officer John O’Donnell, who did not participate in the July 31 surveillance, signed a standard criminal complaint in November 2010 alleging White delivered 3.0 grams of heroin; the printed complaint form contained no detailed factual narrative.
- On November 16, 2010 O’Donnell and a prosecutor appeared before a state judge; O’Donnell testified under oath about the NAGIS report and the judge issued an arrest warrant for White.
- White was arrested, prosecutors later dismissed the charge (informant unavailable), and White sued O’Donnell and the City alleging Fourth Amendment false arrest and a Monell policy claim for using conclusory complaint forms.
- The district court dismissed the Monell claim at pleading stage and granted summary judgment for O’Donnell on the Fourth Amendment claim (qualified immunity); the Seventh Circuit affirmed, holding O’Donnell’s sworn oral testimony about the NAGIS report provided probable cause.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Validity of arrest warrant/probable cause | White: the written complaint was "bare-bones" and could not establish probable cause; O’Donnell’s unrecorded oral testimony is uncertain | O’Donnell: he gave sworn oral testimony about the NAGIS report (which contained detailed facts) and that supported probable cause | Held: O’Donnell’s sworn testimony that he presented the NAGIS report furnished sufficient factual basis for probable cause; summary judgment for O’Donnell on merits |
| Officer liability for seeking warrant knowingly without probable cause | White: O’Donnell knowingly sought a warrant on legally insufficient information | O’Donnell: he relied on detailed NAGIS report and presented it under oath; collective knowledge doctrine permits reliance on other officers’ reports | Held: No evidence O’Donnell knowingly or recklessly sought a warrant lacking probable cause; claim fails |
| Monell claim against City of Chicago | White: City maintains a widespread practice of issuing warrants via conclusory complaint forms without factual affidavits | City: pleading insufficient to show policy/custom causing constitutional injury | Held: Pleading should survive under Leatherman/Twombly/Iqbal standards, but the Monell claim fails on the merits because no underlying constitutional violation (probable cause existed) |
| Whether unrecorded sworn oral testimony can cure a bare-bones written complaint | White: unrecorded testimony raises genuine factual dispute about what was said | O’Donnell: officer’s sworn deposition recounting that he testified under oath about the NAGIS report suffices; arrest-warrant practice differs from search-warrant context | Held: Sworn oral testimony about the NAGIS report (even though not verbatim recorded) was sufficient; differences between arrest and search warrants limit the search-warrant precedent’s force |
Key Cases Cited
- Whiteley v. Warden, Wyoming State Penitentiary, 401 U.S. 560 (1971) (a bare-bones affidavit that supplies no factual basis for probable cause is insufficient for a warrant)
- Spencer v. Staton, 489 F.3d 658 (5th Cir. 2007) (affidavit that is conclusory and barebones cannot be cured by unverified, uncertain oral testimony)
- United States v. Williams, 627 F.3d 247 (7th Cir. 2010) (collective knowledge doctrine allows relying on other officers’ information)
- Leatherman v. Tarrant County Narcotics Intelligence & Coordination Unit, 507 U.S. 163 (1993) (municipal liability complaints need only satisfy Rule 8’s short and plain statement)
- City of Los Angeles v. Heller, 475 U.S. 796 (1986) (no Monell liability absent an underlying constitutional injury)
- Williamson v. Curran, 714 F.3d 432 (7th Cir. 2013) (standard for when an arrest pursuant to a facially valid warrant can support a false-arrest claim)
- Beauchamp v. City of Noblesville, 320 F.3d 733 (7th Cir. 2003) (officer liable only if he knowingly, intentionally, or with reckless disregard sought a warrant on insufficient information)