Tough week for the qualified immunity defense in the 11th Circuit. This case involved a school resource officer who sought and obtained arrest warrants for first and second degree child cruelty against a single working mom. The basis for the charges was laughable and the case was dismissed. But the mom sued the officer for malicious prosecution. The district court granted qualified immunity to the officer but the 11th Circuit reversed. Judge Newsom’s well-written introduction doesn’t pull any punches. Here’s a snippet:
“[E]ven the most officer-protective doctrines have their limits. Officer Smith had Butler arrested on extraordinarily serious felony charges based on conduct that, by any objective measure, doesn’t remotely qualify. And to make matters worse, the affidavits that Officer Smith submitted in support of her warrant applications conspicuously omitted material exculpatory information.”
Butler Case by John Byrne on Scribd
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