Brandon Fox v. Ronald Desoto, Louisville Regional Airport Authority

489 F.3d 227, 2007 U.S. App. LEXIS 12847, 2007 WL 1584212
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedJune 4, 2007
Docket06-5930
StatusPublished
Cited by302 cases

This text of 489 F.3d 227 (Brandon Fox v. Ronald Desoto, Louisville Regional Airport Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brandon Fox v. Ronald Desoto, Louisville Regional Airport Authority, 489 F.3d 227, 2007 U.S. App. LEXIS 12847, 2007 WL 1584212 (6th Cir. 2007).

Opinion

OPINION

RALPH B. GUY, JR., Circuit Judge.

Plaintiff Brandon Fox appeals from the judgment entered in favor of defendants Officer Ronald DeSoto and the Louisville Regional Airport Authority on claims arising from his arrest and subsequent prosecution for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. The district court dismissed plaintiffs state law claims for false arrest and imprisonment and for assault and battery as time-barred, and granted summary judgment to defendants on the remaining claims. The district court found DeSoto was entitled to qualified immunity on the plaintiffs Fourth Amendment claims, and concluded that the plaintiff could not prevail on either the claim for malicious pros *231 ecution against DeSoto or on the derivative claim against the Airport Authority for negligent hiring, training, and/or retention of DeSoto. After review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the judgment, albeit on the somewhat different grounds as dictated by the recent decision in Wallace v. Kato, — U.S. —, 127 S.Ct. 1091, 166 L.Ed.2d 973 (2007).

I.

On September 2, 2002, plaintiff Brian Fox was a Special Agent of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) planning to travel from Louisville, Kentucky, to Chicago, Illinois, on a flight operated by Southwest Airlines. Fox was authorized to travel with the weapon he was carrying, had completed the necessary paperwork, and had been screened at the security checkpoint. He boarded the airplane and had not yet been introduced to the captain and crew as is required by regulation, when he got into a verbal exchange with a female passenger and her flaneé.

There is no dispute that Fox was having some difficulty fitting his carry-on luggage into an overhead bin and was blocking the aisle. The female passenger told plaintiff that the bag was not going to fit and complained that he was blocking the way. Fox admitted that he told her to “fuck off’ and that her fiancé spoke up aggressively in her defense. Although there was testimony that Fox told him to “fuck off’ as well, Fox did not recall saying anything to him. Fox returned to his seat, but the exchange had come to the attention of a flight attendant who asked the pilot if they could remove someone for cursing at another passenger.

Captain Jeff Hefner told her that they could, but she became uncomfortable about approaching Fox when she learned that he was armed. Hefner intervened, called Fox forward, confirmed that Fox had said “fuck off’ to another passenger, and then ordered Fox off the airplane without giving him an opportunity to explain. While Fox retrieved his bag, Hefner called for security to come to the gate and then escorted Fox down the jetway to the gate area. Hefner advised the gate agent and TSA employees that he was removing an armed individual who purported to be an IRS agent for causing a disturbance on the aircraft. Fox asked to speak with Southwest’s Ground Security Coordinator, as he had been trained to do if he encountered problems while traveling with a weapon. He then took a seat in the gate area. 1

Fox testified that he was surprised that security had been called, and felt overwhelmed and a little anxious and embarrassed. Officer DeSoto, who was employed by the Regional Airport Authority, as well as Officer Minton and Lt. Clark, responded to the gate area. Fox was asked for identification several times, but he refused to talk with anyone and repeatedly asked for the Ground Security Coordinator. After several minutes, De-Soto approached and asked Fox to identify himself. Fox refused to talk to him and asked again for the Ground Security Coordinator. Michelle Miller arrived and approached Fox, asking if he had checked any luggage and telling him that he would be rebooked on another flight. Miller testified that she was employed as a Custom *232 er Service Supervisor as well as being the designated Ground Security Coordinator on duty at that time. Miller stated that she told Fox as much, while Fox denied that she had. Fox would not talk with Miller, so she went to the gate agent and determined that Fox had not checked any luggage.

DeSoto testified that Fox had begun to draw the attention of other passengers who began gathering around to watch instead of attending to their business. De-Soto decided to remove Fox from the area, asked Fox to come with him to talk somewhere else, and took Fox’s arm to have him stand up. DeSoto claimed that Fox stiffened, made a fist, and reached for his right side. Fox denied making a fist, but admitted that he stood up and reached for his right side. Fox testified that he was reaching for his credentials, but admitted that he was also carrying his weapon on the right.

It was then that DeSoto used an arm-bar hold to take Fox down to the floor. DeSoto held Fox face down, with a knee on the back of his head, and handcuffed him. DeSoto required some assistance getting the handcuffs on, and tossed away plaintiffs weapon, ammunition clips, and identification. In the process, Fox suffered a cut and bruising below one eye. Arrested on misdemeanor charges of disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, Fox was taken to the jail and later released. The state criminal trial, which was not held until June 9, 2004, ended with the state trial judge granting a directed verdict in favor of Fox on both charges.

Six months later, on December 28, 2004, plaintiff filed this action against DeSoto and the Airport Authority asserting claims under federal and state law. Fox alleged that DeSoto arrested him without probable cause and used excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment. 42 U.S.C. § 1983. State law claims for false arrest and imprisonment, assault and battery, and malicious prosecution were also asserted against DeSoto. Finally, a derivative claim was alleged against the Airport Authority for negligent hiring, training, and/or retention of DeSoto.

After an opportunity for discovery, defendants filed a motion seeking, in the alternative, dismissal of the claims as time-barred, or summary judgment on the merits. The motion was resolved in defendants’ favor on June 6, 2006, with the district court dismissing the state law claims for false arrest and imprisonment and for assault and battery as untimely, and granting summary judgment to the defendants on all remaining claims. Judgment was entered accordingly, and plaintiff appealed.

II.

A determination that a claim was filed outside the applicable statute of limitations is a conclusion of law that this court reviews de novo. Tolbert v. State of Ohio Dep’t of Tramp., 172 F.3d 934, 938 (6th Cir.1999). The district court’s decision granting summary judgment is also reviewed de novo. Smith v. Ameritech, 129 F.3d 857, 863 (6th Cir.1997). Summary judgment is appropriate when there are no issues of material fact in dispute and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. fed. R. Crv. P. 56(c).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
489 F.3d 227, 2007 U.S. App. LEXIS 12847, 2007 WL 1584212, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brandon-fox-v-ronald-desoto-louisville-regional-airport-authority-ca6-2007.