Dismissal of Law Enforcement Liability Lawsuit

November 30, 2016

In this case, the plaintiff was arrested at a local grocery store by law enforcement officers after store security personnel detained him for attempted theft.  After serving 54 days in jail, the charges against him were dropped.  On the date he was released, he returned to the same store where he threatened the store employees who reported him.  Law enforcement personnel were again summoned and arrested the plaintiff for making criminal threats, resulting in him being held in custody for about 79 days before those charges were dropped.  The plaintiff sued our clients, a law enforcement agency and several law enforcement personnel, alleging claims for, among other things, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, violation of his civil rights under the Bane Act (Civil Code Section 52.1), and negligence.  We obtained a dismissal of all claims against our clients at the pleading stages.