Exactly Where Was Derek Chauvin's Knee, and Does It Matter?
A use-of-force expert says the officers who pinned George Floyd to the ground should have recognized the risk of positional asphyxia.
Fourth Amendment
Police Chief Refutes Derek Chauvin's Claim That He Did What He Was Trained to Do
Medaria Arradondo says Chauvin's treatment of George Floyd violated department policy in several important ways.
George Floyd's Prolonged Prone Restraint Was 'Totally Unnecessary,' a Police Lieutenant Testifies
Richard Zimmerman's testimony contradicts the defense claim that Derek Chauvin "did exactly what he had been trained to do."
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.”
Derek Chauvin Argues That His Use of Force Was Appropriate and Did Not Kill George Floyd
The defense will have a hard time showing that Chauvin's conduct was justified by any threat Floyd posed.
Government Drone Overflights May Violate Fourth Amendment, Trigger Exclusionary Rule
An interesting Michigan appellate decision.
Shooting a Fleeing Suspect Who Escapes Still Triggers the Fourth Amendment, Says SCOTUS
"The application of physical force to the body with the intent to restrain is a seizure, even if the person does not submit and is not subdued."
Sonia Sotomayor Questions Warrantless Gun Seizure in Big Fourth Amendment Case
“There was no immediate danger,” Sotomayor said, yet the police “decided on their own to go in and seize the gun.”
The Cops Who Drew Guns and Forced an Innocent Family To Lie on the Pavement Were Dismayed by the Angry Response
After gratuitously terrifying a 6-year-old girl, the officers blamed her mother, who also had done nothing illegal.
'The Best Chief in America,' Newly Hired To Run Miami's Police Department, Presided Over Deadly Corruption in Houston
Art Acevedo responded to a 2019 drug raid that killed a middle-aged couple with reflexive defensiveness and obstinate obfuscation.
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.
A Reinstated Third-Degree Murder Charge Gives Jurors Another Option To Convict Derek Chauvin for Killing George Floyd
Like the felony murder charge, it carries a presumptive sentence more than eight years longer than the manslaughter charge.
So Long as You Carry a Cellphone, the Government Can Track You
A phone in your pocket may as well be a GPS beacon strapped to your ankle.
SCOTUS Rules Against an Innocent Man Who Was Choked and Beaten by Cops, but He May Still Get His Day in Court
The justices did not address one of James King's key arguments, which the 6th Circuit will now consider.
'Everything Has Been Criminalized,' Says Neil Gorsuch as He Pushes for Stronger Fourth Amendment Protections
The justice weighs in during oral arguments in Lange v. California.
States Can Provide Their Own Civil Remedies for Police Abuse
They need not wait for the Supreme Court or Congress to restrict or abolish qualified immunity.
A New Report Shows Elijah McClain Was Killed by a Cascade of Constitutional Violations
An independent panel concludes there was no legal justification for stopping, frisking, arresting, or assaulting McClain.
Merrick Garland's Worrying Record on Criminal Justice Reform
What to expect from Joe Biden’s pick for attorney general.
New Mexico Could Be the Third State To Authorize Lawsuits Against Abusive Cops Without Qualified Immunity
A bill approved by the state House would let people sue government officials for violating rights protected by the state constitution.
5th Circuit Grants Qualified Immunity to Cops Who Ignited a Suicidal, Gasoline-Drenched Man by Tasing Him
The appeals court concluded that the officers' use of force was reasonable in the circumstances.
Sotomayor Invokes Scalia on Fourth Amendment Protections
Does the Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable seizures include the right to be free from an unreasonable attempted seizure?
Derek Chauvin May Get a Sentence Much Shorter Than the One William Barr Thought Would Be Seen As Too Lenient
The former attorney general reportedly nixed a plea deal that involved a sentence of more than 10 years but would have precluded a federal prosecution.
An Unconstitutional Arrest for Refusing To Show ID to the Cops
Fourth Amendment advocates prevail in Wingate v. Fulford.
Thanks to Colorado's Reforms, Cops Who Forced Children To Lie on the Pavement at Gunpoint Might Be Held Accountable
A state law eliminated qualified immunity as a defense for abusive officers.
SCOTUS To Decide if Cops Need More 'Elbow Room' To Conduct Certain Warrantless Home Searches
A new case tests the limits of the “community caretaking exception” to the Fourth Amendment.
Two Federal Lawsuits Say the Houston Police Department's Culture of Corruption and Impunity Killed an Innocent Couple
The families of Dennis Tuttle and Rhogena Nicholas say the city's policies and practices invited Fourth Amendment violations.
The Houston Cop Charged With Murdering Dennis Tuttle During a Disastrous Drug Raid Portrays His Victim As the Aggressor
After breaking into Tuttle's home with no legal justification, police killed his dog and his wife.
Prison Guards Who Forced Menstruating Visitor To Expose Vaginal and Anal Cavities Are Protected by Qualified Immunity
A federal court said it did not violate her Fourth Amendment rights.
Another Houston Cop Is Indicted for Murder Because of a 2019 Drug Raid That Killed a Middle-Aged Couple
So far a dozen narcotics officers have been charged as a result of the investigation triggered by the disastrous operation.
A New Report Casts Doubt on Both Fears and Hopes About the Consequences of Abolishing Qualified Immunity
A Connecticut law that made it easier to sue abusive cops is not expected to have a noticeable effect on municipal insurance costs.
A Libertarian Judge Champions Privacy Rights Against Warrantless Police Searches
Justice Clint Bolick dissents in Arizona v. Mixton.
2 More Cops Involved in Breonna Taylor's Death Receive Termination Letters
Louisville's police chief wants to fire an officer who shot Taylor and a detective who "lied" in the search warrant affidavit.
A Fourth Amendment Mistake the Supreme Court Should Fix
Don’t expand the “hot pursuit” exception to the Fourth Amendment.
Video Shows Chicago Police Humiliating Naked Woman During Wrong-Door Raid
Chicago went to court to try and block a local news station from airing the body camera footage.
What's Worse Than Pumpkin Spice? Cops Pulling People Over To Give Them Gift Cards
This holiday season, police should give citizens the gift of just leaving them in peace.
How to Beat Legalized Larceny
Government bullies empowered by civil forfeiture laws often back down, but only when their victims can afford a fight.
DEA to Return $43,000 It Seized From Tampa Woman at Airport
The DEA dropped its attempt to keep the money roughly two months after the woman joined a class-action lawsuit challenging cash seizures at airports.
SCOTUS Considers Whether James King Has Any Recourse Against the Cops Who Choked and Beat Him for No Good Reason
According to the government, a law aimed at helping victims like King prevents him from holding his assailants accountable.
'Zero Accountability' for Cops Who Choked and Beat an Innocent Man
The federal government wants the Supreme Court to rule that the victim has no recourse.
Invoking Scalia, Sotomayor Presses for Broad Fourth Amendment Protections
The Supreme Court weighs police shootings and unreasonable seizures in Torres v. Madrid.
Utah Legislator: If You Don't Want to Be Attacked by Police Dogs, 'Stay Home'
The state legislature is considering reforms in response to the use of dogs against cooperative suspects.
Freed To Speak, Grand Juror Says Charges in Breonna Taylor's Death Were Never Considered, Let Alone Rejected
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said "the grand jury agreed" that indicting the two officers who shot Taylor was inappropriate.
These 7th Circuit Decisions Suggest Amy Coney Barrett Takes a Constrained View of Qualified Immunity
In several cases, the Supreme Court nominee voted to allow civil rights lawsuits against officers accused of misconduct.
A Month Before Louisville Drug Warriors Killed Breonna Taylor, They Knew the 'Suspicious Packages' She Supposedly Was Receiving Came From Amazon
The detective who obtained the search warrant cited the deliveries to falsely implicate Taylor in drug trafficking.
Nearly 2 Years After Houston Drug Warriors Killed Rhogena Nicholas, Her Family May Get a Chance To Find Out What Happened
Despite the city's stubborn resistance, a judge will finally consider the family's request to depose police supervisors.
Cop Who Fired 16 Rounds at Breonna Taylor Said He Only Surmised That He Had Used His Gun
Drug warriors gratuitously created the chaotic situation that state prosecutors say justified the use of deadly force.
SCOTUS Could Use More Skeptics Like Amy Coney Barrett
The 7th Circuit judge’s track record suggests she would frequently be a friend of civil liberties.
The Legal Response to Breonna Taylor's Death Shows How Drug Prohibition Transforms Murder Into Self-Defense
The hail of bullets that killed her can be justified only in a country that uses violence to enforce politicians' pharmacological prejudices.
