On July 2, 2024, the Court of Appeals of Georgia decided the State v. Caldwell[i], in which the court examined whether a deputy unreasonably extended the duration of a traffic stop by questioning the driver about marijuana.  The relevant facts of Caldwell are as follows: On April 9, 2021, Deputy Reece of the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office initiated a traffic stop of a vehicle after observing that the driver was not wearing his seatbelt. Deputy Reece approached the vehicle and made contact with Daniel Murray, the driver, and Caldwell, who was seated in the front passenger's seat. As Deputy Reece requested [...]

On January 23, 2025, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals decided Moore v. Oakland Cnty.[i], which is instructive regarding the use of soft-empty-hand control tactics with a non-compliant, driver during a traffic stop.  The relevant facts of Moore, taken directly from the case, are as follows: On May 8, 2020, Glorianna Moore drove her car to deliver a Dunkin' Donuts order to a DoorDash customer in Pontiac, Michigan. Officer Brian Wilson noticed that she was going 50 miles per hour in a 35 mile-per-hour zone. He stopped her. Wilson's dashcam and Moore's phone camera captured the next three minutes. Wilson [...]

On January 17, 2025, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals decided Cantu v. Austin Police Dep’t[i], which is instructive regarding the use of deadly force, as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).  The relevant facts of Cantu, taken directly from the case, are as follows: Paul Cantu was "suicidal and suffering from mental distress" when the Austin Police Department (APD) encountered him on January 29, 2019. APD Sergeant Michael Joseph located Cantu's car off-road in a grassy field while responding to a service call around 1:40 a.m. that morning. Joseph parked behind the car and shined his spotlights [...]

On January 21, 2025, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals decided Ancheta v. Jones[i], in which several police officers converged on drug suspect at a gas station.  The first officer to approach, with gun pointed, was in plainclothes and allegedly failed to properly identify himself.  The drug suspect was shot, based on his actions, and he filed suit arguing that the first officer’s failure to properly identify himself led to his shooting.  Since use of force cases are fact-intensive, the relevant facts of Ancheta, taken directly from the case, are as follows: October 2018, officers with the Winnebago County, Illinois, [...]

On April 4, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals decided Fleuranville v. Mia. Dade County[i], in which the court examined whether detectives did a sufficient investigation regarding rape allegations. The relevant facts of Fleuranville, taken directly from the case, are as follows: On May 11, 2018, a 74-year-old woman accused her son, Fleuranville, of sexually assaulting her on multiple occasions. The victim disclosed the sexual assaults to her daughter. The arrest affidavit contained the following statement: The victim advised that on an unknown date in November 2017, the subject called her into a bedroom in her single-family residence. Once inside, [...]

A recent 2025 decision by the United States Supreme Court, Barnes v Felix, 605 U.S. ___(2025), has changed the landscape of how Federal Courts are to evaluate Fourth Amendment claims of police use of force, more specifically, the use of deadly force. In a unanimous 9-0 decision, the Court rejected a prior restrictive legal analysis called the ‘moment of threat’ doctrine, which traditionally had shielded police officers from liability. Instead, the SCOTUS opined that a “totality of the circumstances” test should be used to analyze Fourth Amendment excessive force claims. This bright-line change has the potential to affect school resource [...]