A Federal Cop Devised a Bogus Sex Trafficking Ring and Jailed This Teen for 2 Years. The Cop Can't Be Sued.
The most powerful officers are held to the lowest standard of accountability.
Qualified Immunity
Nassau County Passes Bill That Could Make Criticizing a Cop Punishable by $50,000
Yet under qualified immunity, it's incredibly difficult for the public to sue police.
No Qualified Immunity for University of Iowa Officials Who Violated Christian Students' First Amendment Rights
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit provides a useful reminder that qualified immunity is not just for police officers.
Texas Cops Realized They Raided the Wrong House. They Kept Searching Anyway.
Three of the officers were denied qualified immunity, but accountability is a long way off.
A New Florida Bill Could Criminalize Filming Cops on the Job
"If the police don't want to be filmed or observed, they should get out of the public service field."
A Qualified Immunity Compromise Is Crumbling. You Can Thank the Law Enforcement Lobby.
Police unions so often protect their own—at the expense of the public.
Trump Judicial Appointees Clash Over Qualified Immunity and 'the Woke Constitution'
The fight over qualified immunity divides "conservative" judges on the 5th Circuit.
Clarence Thomas, the Supreme Court's Most Conservative Justice, Trashes Qualified Immunity Again
The Court has "failed to justify our enacted policy," he wrote.
Justice Thomas Takes Another Shot at Qualified Immunity
He repeats his concern that QI doctrine rests on "shaky ground" and imposes a "one-size-fits-all doctrine" that is "an odd fit for many cases," including those involving university administrators.
He Died After He Was Shot in the Back by a Cop. Will Anyone Be Held Accountable?
Salaythis Melvin's family says they want justice.
He Died After Cops Shackled Him and Held Him Facedown. A Court Said That Was Constitutional. SCOTUS Isn't So Sure.
The officers might receive qualified immunity, however.
This Suicidal, Gasoline-Drenched Man Burned to Death After Cops Tased Him. A Federal Court Says That's Reasonable Force.
"In what legal universe is it not even plausibly unreasonable to knowingly immolate someone?" asks dissenting judge
This Cop Conducted 3 Warrantless Searches in Under 3 Years. He Gets To Keep His Job.
Once again, it shows just how hard it is to hold bad officers accountable.
Bill Barr Gets Away With Busting Heads in Lafayette Square Because He's a Fed
"In lower courts' view, [a] federal badge now equals absolute immunity."
Cops Punched a Man Hanging From a Window and Tased Him After He Fell. They Got Qualified Immunity.
But the appeals court wasn't having it.
Over 24 Cops Raided the Wrong Address and Wrecked an Elderly Man's Home. They All Got Qualified Immunity.
There will be no justice for Onree Norris.
Can Republicans Be Persuaded To Restrict Qualified Immunity?
Polling shows a sharp partisan divide on the issue, but it also suggests that compromise might be possible.
Baton Rouge Cops Will Not Face Disciplinary Charges for Strip-Searching a Minor in Public
The announcement comes days after an exclusive report from Reason attracted national attention to the case.
10 Cops Got Qualified Immunity After Holding a Shackled Man Facedown Until He Died
The Supreme Court will soon announce if it'll consider an appeal.
The Fear That Abolishing Qualified Immunity Would Expose Cops to Ruinous Personal Liability Is a Big Fat Red Herring
A study of civil rights cases found that "police officers are virtually always indemnified" by their employers.
Baton Rouge Cops Strip-Searched a Minor During a Traffic Stop and Entered a Family's Home Without a Warrant. The City Just Settled for $35,000.
The case is an indictment on just how hard it is to get accountability when the government violates your rights.
A City Got Protections From Qualified Immunity After a Cop Killed a Man. SCOTUS Won't Hear the Case.
The decision will make it even more difficult for victims to hold the government accountable when their rights are violated.
A Euclid Cop Killed a Man Who Had Been Sleeping in His Car. The Cop Can't Be Sued. The City Can't Be, Either.
The Supreme Court has a chance to fix this. The stakes are high.
Congressional Democrats Waffle on Qualified Immunity
Cops say they can't function without qualified immunity, while their supporters on the right say abolishing it would be a step toward defunding the police. Neither claim is true.
Cops Who Beat a Man After Pulling Him Over for Broken Lights Receive Qualified Immunity
The victim will now have no right to argue his case before a jury in civil court.
He Lost His Eye After a Cop Allegedly Fired a Tear Gas Canister at His Face. The Officer Says He Has Qualified Immunity.
If the officer succeeds, the victim will not be allowed to sue on those claims.
Cops Receive Qualified Immunity for Coercing a 13-Year-Old Into Confessing to a Murder He Didn't Commit
The boy was sentenced to 25 years' imprisonment.
Cops Who Killed a Man While Holding Him in a Hog-Tie Position Got Qualified Immunity. The Appeals Court Wasn't Having It.
Up for debate was whether or not it was "clearly established" that officers cannot apply injurious force to a subject who isn't resisting.
Joe Biden Just Outlined the Most Expensive Agenda in Modern History. Progressives Want More.
"We need a Green New Deal for Public Housing," says Rep. Jamaal Bowman. "We need a Green New Deal for Cities…and we need a Green New Deal for Public Schools."
If Biden Is Serious About Criminal Justice Reform, He Needs To Get Serious About Qualified Immunity
The doctrine shields state actors from accountability.
Tim Scott Is Proposing a Major Reform to Qualified Immunity
The GOP has resisted reining in the doctrine. That might change.
The Chauvin Verdict Is a Reminder That We Still Need To Abolish Qualified Immunity
Most victims of police misconduct never get to take their cases to court.
Overcriminalization Killed Daunte Wright
A police officer pulled the trigger. But Wright shouldn't have been pulled over in the first place.
New Mexico Abolishes Qualified Immunity
It is the third state to rein in the legal doctrine that protects state actors from accountability for misconduct.
No Qualified Immunity for Cop Who Shot and Killed a Suicidal Man, Says Federal Court
“An officer violates the Fourth Amendment if he shoots an unarmed, incapacitated suspect who is moving away from everyone present at the scene.”
Police Officers Brutally Beat an Undercover Cop During the St. Louis Protests. A Jury Declined To Hold Them Accountable.
Luther Hall was assaulted so severely he required a spinal fusion.
Cops Tried To Force a Man To Delete a Video of Them Beating a Suspect. They Got Qualified Immunity.
The officers knowingly violated the First Amendment, said the court. But that doesn't matter.
New York City Ends Qualified Immunity for Police Officers
It is the first city in the U.S. to do so.
California Lawmakers Try Again To Create a System To Decertify Bad Cops
Union resistance shut down last year’s effort.
A Lawyer for George Floyd's Family Says a Record-Breaking Settlement Gives Cities '27 Million Reasons' To Curtail Police Abuse
But the agreement could complicate Derek Chauvin's murder trial, and it leaves unresolved the question of whether qualified immunity would have blocked the lawsuit.
Is the Supreme Court Preparing to End Qualified Immunity?
Experts disagree on whether this is likely or not. The answer remains unclear. But, either way, reform advocates should pursue both litigation and legislative reform. The two approaches are mutually reinforcing, not mutually exclusive.
Cops Who Assaulted and Arrested a Man for Standing Outside His Own House Got Qualified Immunity. SCOTUS Won't Hear the Case.
The Supreme Court delivers another blow to a victim of egregious police abuse.
A Promising Qualified Immunity Decision From a Potential Biden SCOTUS Nominee
Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson denied qualified immunity to the officers involved in Patterson v. United States.
Ayanna Pressley Revives Justin Amash's Bill To End Qualified Immunity
The Ending Qualified Immunity Act of 2021 would no longer let state actors violate your rights without consequence.
A California Man Died After Cops Knelt on His Neck During a Mental Health Call. Then the Department Tried To Hide It.
Angelo Quinto's family has filed a wrongful death claim.
