Comichi v. Pethel

CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
DecidedJune 23, 2026
Docket25-10954
StatusUnpublished

This text of Comichi v. Pethel (Comichi v. Pethel) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Comichi v. Pethel, (5th Cir. 2026).

Opinion

Case: 25-10954 Document: 73-1 Page: 1 Date Filed: 06/23/2026

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals ____________ Fifth Circuit

FILED No. 25-10954 June 23, 2026 ____________ Lyle W. Cayce Clerk E’Mann Comichi,

Plaintiff—Appellant,

versus

Officer Ingrid A. Pethel; Officer Brian S. Lord; Officer Wesley R. Hamilton; Detective William M. Norwood,

Defendants—Appellees. ______________________________

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas USDC No. 4:25-CV-512 ______________________________

Before Elrod, Chief Judge, and Higginbotham and Graves, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam: * Plaintiff–Appellant E’Mann Comichi attempted to stop the towing of his nephew’s illegally parked Penske rental truck in Euless, Texas. Three police officers arrived at the scene and, after a lengthy discussion, arrested him. Comichi alleges numerous claims against the police officers and a

_____________________ * This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5. Case: 25-10954 Document: 73-1 Page: 2 Date Filed: 06/23/2026

No. 25-10954

detective under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, including unlawful search and seizure, false arrest, failure to intervene, and malicious prosecution. The district court granted Defendants–Appellees’ motion to dismiss, dismissing all claims with prejudice on qualified immunity grounds. We AFFIRM the district court’s dismissal of Comichi’s unlawful- search and unlawful-seizure claims against Officers Pethel, Lord, and Hamilton. We REVERSE only as to its dismissal of his false-arrest claim against Officer Pethel. Based on this reversal, we must also VACATE its dismissal of Comichi’s failure-to-intervene and malicious-prosecution claims against Officers Lord and Hamilton, which the district court has not yet addressed on the merits, for consideration on the merits in the first instance. I A Sometime in September 2024, Comichi’s nephew parked a Penske rental truck in a public parking lot near the Euless Dog Park before leaving town for a vacation. Comichi’s nephew was the only renter listed on the truck’s rental agreement, but Comichi had paid for the rental. On September 16, 2024, police “red tagged” the truck as illegally parked. The red tag ordered the vehicle moved by September 18. On September 22, Officers Ingrid Pethel and Brian Lord observed the truck still parked in the parking lot. Officer Pethel called a towing company to tow the vehicle. On September 22, 2024, Comichi was walking his nephew’s dog near the dog park when he observed the Penske truck in the road, positioned behind the tow truck. Comichi ran to the truck and sat in the driver’s seat to prevent the tow truck operator from completing the tow. The operator

2 Case: 25-10954 Document: 73-1 Page: 3 Date Filed: 06/23/2026

informed Comichi that he would not release the truck unless Comichi paid a $350 “drop fee.” Comichi called the police. Officer Wesley Hamilton arrived, and Comichi informed him that, because the Penske truck was not completely hooked up to the tow truck, he was entitled to reclaim it. Officer Hamilton told Comichi that, if the Penske truck was already hooked up to the tow truck, his act of entering the truck and preventing the tow was “obstructing.” The tow truck operator asked Comichi to roll the driver window up so that he could show him the red tag. Officer Hamilton then asked Comichi to step out of the truck so that he could see the language on the red tag, and Comichi began to raise his voice at Officer Hamilton and object that this was not a criminal matter. Officer Hamilton told Comichi, “Look, but now you’re obstructing the police. This [the red tag] is a police notice.” Comichi protested but ultimately complied, stepping out of the truck and reading the information on the red tag aloud. Comichi fervently continued to assert that the truck had not been fully hooked up to the tow truck. Officer Hamilton told Comichi to “chill out,” and Comichi apologized. The tow truck operator then stated: “He’s right, I was not 100% connected to it, I had moved [the Penske truck] from its spot to connect to it, and he got me as I was backing up.” The operator again offered for Comichi to pay the drop fee to reclaim the truck, and Comichi refused. The operator explained that he had already picked up the truck from its original parked location and that the tow was already in progress. During this interaction, Officer Hamilton radioed for other officers to “come down here.” Officers Pethel and Lord arrived at the scene. Officer Pethel asked Comichi to move out of the roadway, and the group moved toward the side of the road.

3 Case: 25-10954 Document: 73-1 Page: 4 Date Filed: 06/23/2026

Officer Pethel then informed Comichi that she would pat him down to check for weapons. She took his arm and moved him to the sidewalk, instructing him on how to stand for the pat-down, and he complied. Comichi alleges that the pat-down included touching his genitals and searching his pockets. Officers Lord and Hamilton watched Officer Pethel pat Comichi down. After the pat-down, Officer Pethel asked Comichi for his name several times while Comichi explained his view of the incident to her. He declined to give his name but continued speaking with her. Officer Pethel offered Comichi the option to pay a drop fee to reclaim the truck, and he declined. After explaining that the truck had been abandoned pursuant to the relevant city ordinance, Officer Pethel informed Comichi that the truck would be towed. Comichi then acquiesced and began to walk away. Officer Pethel asked Comichi to give her his name before he left. Comichi again refused to identify himself. Officer Pethel replied: “I spoke with you, and you were detained, so you need to give me your name. And I’m not going to make it super difficult for you; I’m making it very easy for you. You are going to give me your name, or else you’re under arrest.” Comichi stated that he would let the officers arrest him, and Officer Pethel responded: “No, how about you make it much simpler and just give me your name so that I don’t have to take you to jail for this.” Comichi said nothing and placed his hands behind his back to be handcuffed. Officer Pethel again asked for his name, but Comichi did not respond. She handcuffed Comichi and stated that he was under arrest. She escorted him to her vehicle, searched his person, and removed his personal belongings. After the squad cars departed, the tow truck operator towed the Penske truck pursuant to officer instruction.

4 Case: 25-10954 Document: 73-1 Page: 5 Date Filed: 06/23/2026

Officer Pethel transported Comichi to the Hurst Jail, where he continued to refuse to identify himself. He was charged with Interference with Public Duties and Failure to Identify. Two days later, while Comichi was still in custody, Detective William Norwood reviewed the incident and requested to drop the Interference with Public Duties charge. Comichi spent forty-five hours at the jail before his release. The Failure to Identify charge was later dropped. B Comichi sued Officers Pethel, Lord, and Hamilton and Detective Norwood, the tow truck company, and the tow truck operator. 1 He alleges claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for: (1) false arrest; (2) unlawful search; and (3) unlawful search and seizure incident to unlawful arrest; (4) failure to intervene; (5) unlawful seizure of the truck; and (6) malicious prosecution. 2 Defendants–Appellees moved to dismiss under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6), asserting qualified immunity.

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Comichi v. Pethel, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/comichi-v-pethel-ca5-2026.