Q: Can illegal search and arrest give the arrested possible legal or tort rights against cop or county?
A cop arrests Joe Jones after claiming to search Jones computer and find something illegal. Jones's attorney hires a computer expert to examine alleged evidence but ADA stalls for over a year and will not give expert access. Finally it is discovered that there never was anything illegal and there also was no search warrant. It was all fabricated out of vengeance by the cop. The case gets dismissed, of course, but can Jones possibly have legal and/or tort actions against the county or cop and ADA?
A: The 4th and 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects citizens unreasonable searches and seizures without due process. A wrongful or false arrest is a violation of civil rights. Generally, cases are pursued under 42 U.S.C. 1983 in which you can sue the police officer (person arresting you) or the police agency. However, keep in mind, there is sovereign immunity and qualified immunity that can make it a challenge. You should consult with a civil rights attorney.
A:
Yes, if the allegations were fabricated by the cop out of vengeance. It is very important to present substantial evidence of the past dealings and relationship between Joe Jones and the cop outside of the cop's occupational involvement with Jones.
Typically, when an employee acts out of personal vengeance, his employer is not liable for his actions unless the employer breaches an independent duty to the person (Joe Jones).
A:
The question here is whether the police officer is protected by qualified immunity. In this situation, i think a good case can be made that the arrest was a violation of your rights and that the police officers behavior should not be protected by the law, because this was a clear and obvious deviation from his regular work duties.
Furthermore, I would argue that the city was negligent in training and supervising the officers, and so, you could hold them liable as well. How was the city negligent in supervising? Well, if it took a year and a half of scrutiny for them to turn over this information, it is clear that they were trying to cover things up. This kind of behavior bleeds into the work culture, and only emboldens police officers to behave in this kind of way.
So to answer your question, yes, you should be able to go after both the cop and the county for the breach of your rights and the false imprisonment.
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