Malcolm Bunnell individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B. v. Caitlin White individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B., et al. v. City of Fishers

CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Indiana
DecidedMay 14, 2026
Docket1:23-cv-02113
StatusUnknown

This text of Malcolm Bunnell individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B. v. Caitlin White individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B., et al. v. City of Fishers (Malcolm Bunnell individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B. v. Caitlin White individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B., et al. v. City of Fishers) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Indiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Malcolm Bunnell individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B. v. Caitlin White individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B., et al. v. City of Fishers, (S.D. Ind. 2026).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF INDIANA INDIANAPOLIS DIVISION

MALCOLM BUNNELL individually and on ) behalf of their minor child A.B., ) CAITLIN WHITE individually and on ) behalf of their minor child A.B., ) ) Plaintiffs, ) ) v. ) No. 1:23-cv-02113-JPH-TAB ) CITY OF FISHERS, et al. ) ) Defendants. )

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT Plaintiffs Malcolm Bunnell and Caitlin White, individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B., brought this action against the City of Fishers and four Fishers police officers, alleging that the officers' conduct violated their Fourth Amendment rights and state tort law. Plaintiffs' claims are based on an incident where the officers stopped their vehicle, detained them, and searched the vehicle. Shortly before this happened, one of the officers had been told that Mr. Bunnell had a gun and had just been involved in an altercation with another man in a nearby parking lot. It turned out that Mr. Bunnell did not have a gun, and the person who told the officers otherwise was criminally charged for false reporting. Defendants have filed a motion for summary judgment. Dkt. [40]. For the reasons below, that motion is GRANTED. I. Facts and Background Because Defendants have moved for summary judgment under Rule 56(a), the Court views and recites the evidence "in the light most favorable to the non-moving party and draws all reasonable inferences in that party's favor." Zerante v. DeLuca, 555 F.3d 582, 584 (7th Cir. 2009) (citation omitted).

On April 21, 2023, a woman called 911 to report an altercation near a Wal-Mart in Fishers, Indiana. Dkt. 44 Ex. 15 (911 recording). The woman reported that a black man in a beige-colored SUV and a white man were "yelling and screaming at each other." Id. at 0:29–0:37. Officer Robert Thompson, of the Fishers Police Department ("FPD"), responded. Dkt. 44 Ex. 17 (Thompson body cam). Officer Thompson had been told by dispatch that there was a "fight in progress at the Walmart, with individuals possibly on the ground," dkt. 41-4 at 11:13-16 (Thompson Dep.), but no mention was made of

a gun, id. at 14:7-11. Upon arrival, Officer Thompson approached the white man—later identified as Dustin Martin—and asked if he was arguing with someone. Dkt. 44 Ex. 17 at 15:19:49. Mr. Martin responded, "yeah, the guy in the Escalade with a gun." Id. at 15:19:53. Officer Thompson asked what was going on, and Mr. Martin said, "the guy in that Escalade, he's got a gun. I told him, I said, why don't you leave me the f**k alone. He just won't leave me the f**k alone."

Id. at 15:20:00–15:20:05. The man in the Escalade—later identified as Malcolm Bunnell—had pulled away from the scene. Dkt. 44 Ex. 18 at 19:20:58 (Thompson dash cam).1 So, at that point, Officer Thompson "had the dispatch call of two men fighting, and possibly one on the ground, and then [he] had information about a weapon." Dkt. 41-4 at 15:3-5 (Thompson Dep.). Based on Mr. Martin's statement, Officer Thompson assumed that Mr. Bunnell had

displayed a gun during the altercation. Id. at 38:9-22–39:1. Officer Thompson then located the beige-colored SUV at an intersection near the Wal-Mart and initiated a stop. Dkts. 41-4 at 39:11–15. He drew his firearm and instructed Mr. Bunnell, the driver, to show his hands. Dkt. 44 Ex. 17 at 15:21:02–15:21:45. Officer Shawn Wynn then arrived on the scene, and Officer Thompson commanded Mr. Bunnell to exit the vehicle and walk backwards. Dkts. 44 Ex. 19 at 15:22:51 (Wynn body cam); 44 Ex. 17 15:23:06–15:23:38. Officer Wynn applied restraints to Mr. Bunnell. Dkt. 44

Ex. 19 at 15:25:15–15:25:52. Officer Thompson then told Caitlin White—Mr. Bunnell's spouse, who was in the vehicle with their baby—to get out of the vehicle. Dkt. 44 Ex. 17 at 15:26:25–15:26:47; dkt. 44 Ex. 19 at 15:26:13– 15:26:16. Sgt. Ben Colling and Officer Cody Weaver then arrived on the scene. Dkts. 44 Ex. 21 at 15:26:32 (Colling body cam); 44-22 at 15:26:38 (Weaver body cam). Sgt. Colling drew his firearm and instructed Ms. White to walk

backwards toward the patrol vehicles. Dkt. 44 Ex. 21 at 15:26:52. Officer Weaver placed her in handcuffs. Dkt. 44 Ex. 22 at 15:27:16.

1 As Defendants note, the time stamp on Officer Thompson's dash camera is about four hours ahead of the other time stamps, but no party disputes the accuracy or admissibility of the video. Officer Thompson then asked to search the vehicle. Dkt. 44 Ex. 17 at 15:32:50.2 Mr. Bunnell said there was not a gun in the vehicle, but he could search. Id. at 15:32:54. Near the end of the search, Officer Thompson lifted a blanket that was on the baby before shutting the door. Id. at 15:34:26. Sgt.

Colling removed Ms. White's handcuffs during the search, and she returned to the vehicle. Dkt. 44 Ex. 21 at 15:33:38–15:44:30. After searching the vehicle, Officer Thompson removed Mr. Bunnell's restraints. Dkt. 44 Ex. 17 at 15:35:09. Officer Thompson then gave Mr. Bunnell a business card with a case number on it, id. at 15:44:10, and Mr. Bunnell and Ms. White drove away. Dkt. 44 Ex. 18 at 19:45:51. The stop lasted about 25 minutes. Id. at 19:21:57–19:45:51. Mr. Martin was later charged with misdemeanor false informing and

misdemeanor resisting law enforcement. Dkt. 41-14. The charges were supported by an affidavit sworn by Officer Thompson, stating that Mr. Martin "reported a false commission of a crime stating [Mr. Bunnell] had a gun and failed to stay at the scene after being told to stay while I was conducting my investigation." Dkt. 41-13 at 2.

2 Plaintiffs state that Officer Thompson told Mr. Bunnell that Wal-Mart security had told him to "Get the black guy." Dkt. 47 at 3, 12, 17, 26. The designated video evidence, however, is clear that Mr. Bunnell interjected the words "Get the black guy," which Officer Thomson immediately disagreed with. Dkt. 44 Ex. 17 at 15:30:52. The Court does not credit Plaintiffs' alleged factual dispute because it is contradicted by reliable video evidence. See United States v. Norville, 43 F.4th 680, 682 (7th Cir. 2022) ("[A] video record of the events at issue can evaporate any factual dispute that would otherwise exist." (quoting Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372, 381 (2007)). Plaintiffs filed this action against the City of Fishers, Officer Thompson, Officer Wynn, Sgt. Colling, and Officer Weaver. Dkt. 1 at 1.3 They allege: • Count I: Officer Thompson unlawfully seized Plaintiffs;

• Count II: Officers Thompson and Wynn falsely arrested Mr. Bunnell and violated the Second Amendment by arresting him based on their belief that he had a gun; • Count III: Officer Weaver and Sgt. Colling falsely arrested Ms. White; • Count IV: Officer Thompson and Sgt. Colling used excessive force against Plaintiffs; • Count V: Defendants detained Mr. Bunnell and Ms. White for an

unreasonable length of time; • Count VI: The City of Fishers has a "policy, custom, pattern, and practice of biased based profiling"; and • Count VII: Defendants were negligent by leaving A.B. alone in the vehicle for an extended period of time. Id. at 4–11. Defendants have moved for summary judgment. Dkt. 40. II. Applicable Law Summary judgment shall be granted "if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). The moving party must

3 Plaintiffs also alleged a count against Wal-Mart, but Wal-Mart has been voluntarily dismissed. Dkt. 38.

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Malcolm Bunnell individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B. v. Caitlin White individually and on behalf of their minor child A.B., et al. v. City of Fishers, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/malcolm-bunnell-individually-and-on-behalf-of-their-minor-child-ab-v-insd-2026.