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Summary Judgment in Shooting Case

October 29, 2016

The action arises out of an incident wherein a law enforcement officer shot an individual on a residential street, when the individual reached for and attempted to grab another Deputy’s gun during a detention from a narcotics investigation.  Notwithstanding emergency medical response and treatment, the individual succumbed to his injuries.  Decedent’s family filed a wrongful death case premised on the officer’s alleged use of excessive force, the failure to reasonably summon medical care, the law enforcement agency’s apparent negligence in the hiring, training, and retention, and the agency’s purported negligent policies, procedures, customs, and practices.  We filed a Motion for Summary Judgment on behalf of the defendants, which the Court granted in its entirety.  The Court granted the dispositive motion finding that there was no disputed fact that the force used was reasonable and that the Deputies acted in self-defense.  This decision was affirmed on appeal.