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Employment – Retaliation – First Amendment
Where a plaintiff has alleged that the defendant police chief retaliated against him in violation of 42 U.S.C. §1983, the defendant is entitled to qualified immunity because an objectively reasonable official in his position could have believed that his conduct did not violate the plaintiff’s constitutional rights.
Civil rights – Qualified immunity – First Amendment retaliation
Where a plaintiff whose installer’s licenses were revoked has alleged First Amendment retaliation, the defendant town health inspector should be awarded summary judgment because the plaintiff has not met his burden to show that the defendant is not entitled to invoke qualified immunity.
Civil rights – Deadly force – Qualified immunity
Where a defendant police officer shot and killed a person who was experiencing a mental health crisis, the officer’s use of deadly force was objectively reasonable and did not violate the Fourth Amendment, so her motion for summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds should be allowed as to a 42 U.S.C. §1983 count against her.
U.S. Supreme Court backs officer in excessive force case
Supreme Court rules police officer shielded by qualified immunity in protest excessive force case, finding no clearly established Fourth Amendment violation.
Judge dismisses $5M lawsuit over fatal shooting by Milford officer
A federal judge has dismissed a $5 million civil complaint filed by the mother of a man who was fatally shot nearly six years ago by a Milford police officer.
Civil rights – Pandemic – Soldiers’ Home
Where (1) three veterans died after contracting COVID-19 while living at the Soldiers' Home in Chelsea and (2) a complaint was then filed alleging that the defendants had violated their substantive due process rights, a U.S. District Court judge’s decision to dismiss the complaint should be affirmed based on the defendants' qualified immunity.
Civil rights – Excessive force – Qualified immunity
Where a plaintiff brought suit for injuries he sustained during a traffic stop, one of the defendant officers violated the plaintiff’s Fourth Amendment right to be free from excessive force, but qualified immunity precludes liability on the plaintiff’s excessive force claim.
Civil rights – Excessive force – Qualified immunity
Where (1) a plaintiff whose father died during a run-in with police officers brought an excessive force claim and (2) a request by the officers for summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds was denied, that decision should be reversed to “phase one” of the encounter but affirmed as to the second phase.
Court: UMass violated free speech, but immunity bars damages
UMass violated a male RA's First Amendment rights by disciplining him for speech that did not cause disruption, the 1st Circuit has ruled.
Prisons – Solitary confinement – Qualified immunity
Where a plaintiff who overdosed on a fentanyl-laced pill while in Rhode Island Department of Corrections custody was sanctioned with 450 days in solitary confinement, he has plausibly alleged facts that, if true, would establish that three defendant prison officials have not demonstrated their entitlement to qualified immunity from the plaintiff’s Eighth Amendment claim, as (1) the plaintiff has[...]
Police oppose new plan to overhaul qualified immunity
The contentious debate over qualified immunity for police officers returned to Beacon Hill recently as law enforcement leaders forcefully pushed back against a bill that would ease the path for civil rights claims against officers in state courts.
DCF employees protected by qualified immunity
Four defendant employees of the Department of Children and Families could not be held liable under a substantive due process theory for harm suffered by two minor sisters while in DFC custody, the Supreme Judicial Court has ruled.
