Orn v. City of Tacoma

CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Washington
DecidedNovember 19, 2020
Docket3:13-cv-05974
StatusUnknown

This text of Orn v. City of Tacoma (Orn v. City of Tacoma) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Orn v. City of Tacoma, (W.D. Wash. 2020).

Opinion

1 THE HONORABLE MARSHA J. PECHMAN 2 3 4 5 6 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON AT TACOMA 7 THAN ORN, individually, THALISA ORN, 8 individually, J.O. and C.O., by their Guardian, CLARISSE ORN, 9 No. 3:13-cv-05974-MJP Plaintiffs, 10 Vs. PRETRIAL ORDER CITY OF TACOMA, a municipal 12 corporation; and KRISTOPHER CLARK, in B his individual capacity; Defendants. 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26

VERTETIS AMALA PARTIES’ JOINT PRETRIAL ORDER ATTORNEYS AT LAW 909 A Street, Suite 700

JURISDICTION

3 This Court has subject matter jurisdiction over this action under 28 U.S.C. § 1331. 4 This Court has supplemental subject matter jurisdiction over the state law claims 5 pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1367. 6 CLAIMS AND DEFENSES 7 (A) Plaintiffs will pursue the following claims at trial: ° 1. 42 U.S.C. § 1983: Violation of Fourth Amendment as to Kristopher Clark. Plaintiff Than Orn asserts that Kristopher Clark violated the Fourth Amendment’s clearly ul established prohibitions against excessive force when he employed the use of deadly force 12 against Than Orn for failing to yield or failing to obey instructions without any objectively 13 reasonable belief that Orn posed an immediate threat of harm to himself or others. Than Orn 14 was unarmed and was not suspected of a violent criminal offense. Moreover, Orn was driving 's out of the path of police officers at an extremely slow speed, but Clark affirmatively created a danger by unlawfully establishing a roadblock which endangered his partner officer, getting out

8 of his vehicle against orders, drawing his gun, chasing the path of Orn’s vehicle, and firing 10

19 rounds at Orn through the passenger side and rear of Orm’s vehicle with deliberate indifference 20 to the safety of Orn and those in the immediate vicinity. 21 2. 42 U.S.C. § 1983: Violation of the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment as to City of Tacoma — Monell Claim. Plaintiffs allege that the City of Tacoma violated the Fourth and

Fourteenth Amendment. Defendant City of Tacoma and the Tacoma Police Department have

5 customs, policies, and practices that amount to deliberate indifference to the rights of persons 26 with whom its officers regularly come into contact, including nonviolent suspects like Than

PFAU COCHRAN PARTIES’ JOINT PRETRIAL ORDER VERTETIS. AM ALA NIn, 2-12 nu NKOTA_NATD | Danni 909 A Street, Suite 700

1 Orn. Defendants City of Tacoma and the Tacoma Police Department, with deliberate 2 indifference, failed to train the Tacoma Police Department’s law enforcement officers and 5 failed to adopt and implement policies for, among other things, the use of de-escalation techniques, non-lethal tactics, proper nonviolent suspect apprehension techniques, and the decision-making process that should accompany use of deadly force.' The failure by Defendant

7 City of Tacoma and the Tacoma Police Department to adequately and appropriately train its 8 officers and employee amounts to deliberate indifference to the rights of the persons with whom 9 the Tacoma Police Department’s employees regularly come into contact, including nonviolent 10 suspects like Than Orn. It was highly predictable that Defendant’s failures would result in constitutional violations, like those that occurred in this case. Plaintiff's permanently debilitating injuries are the foreseeable consequence of the Tacoma Police Department’s failure 13 4 to equip its law enforcement officers with the necessary training and tools to handle recurring 15 situations, such as those involving a nonviolent suspect failing to yield or failing to obey an 16 officer’s instructions. The actions of the officers involved, which deprived the Plaintiff of his 17 Constitutional rights, conformed to official policy, custom, and practice of Defendant City of 18 Tacoma. Defendant City of Tacoma and the Tacoma Police Department’s policy of shooting 9 an unarmed individual failing to yield, but avoiding officers and driving at an extremely low speed is blatantly unconstitutional and jeopardizes the safety of all citizens, as evidenced by the

39 police shooting of Than Orn. Moreover, Defendant City of Tacoma has ratified the conduct of 23 Defendant Clark in relation to the injuries of Than Orn, by refusing to appropriately sanction 24 Defendant Clark for his actions. Furthermore, the actions of the City of Tacoma and its police 25 26 ' Plaintiffs understand that Defendants believe that Judge Leighton dismissed claims brought under § 1983 in his summary judgment order. Dkt. 124. This order dismissed Plaintiffs’ state law negligent hiring, training and supervision claim. PFAU COCHRAN PARTIES’ JOINT PRETRIAL ORDER VERTETIS | AM ALA No. 3:13-CV-05974-MJP | Page 2 909 A Street, Suite 700

1 officers resulted in the disintegration of Than Orn’s marriage and the destruction of the parent- 2 child relationship between Than Orn and his children J.O., C.O., and Thalisa Orn. 3 4 3. Battery as to Kristopher Clark. Defendant Kristopher Clark intentionally shot

5 plaintiff Than Orn multiple times in the back and spine and other parts of his body without

6 provocation, license or justification. The acts of Defendant Clark were done with intent to 7 cause harmful or offensive contact or an apprehension by Than Orn of such contact. 4. Negligence as to City of Tacoma. Defendant City of Tacoma was responsible for the actions of its agents and employees under the theory of respondeat superior. Defendant

City of Tacoma, through its employees, including the named individual defendant Kristopher 12 Clark and the officers who engaged in a police pursuit of Than Orn, owed a duty to use 13 reasonable care with regard to its attempts to take Than Orn into police custody. Defendant 14 City of Tacoma, through its employees, including the named individual defendant Kristopher 15 Clark and the officers who engaged in a police pursuit of Than Orn, violated that duty through the following activities, including but not limited to, engaging in a police pursuit against policy, blocking all avenues of exit against policy, and firing a weapon into the rear of a moving

19 vehicle. 20 (B) Defendants will pursue the following defenses at trial: 71 1. Claims Dismissed on Summary judgment As an initial matter, defendants assert that the pretrial order should not contain any mention of their “failure to train’ claims as all such claims, both federal and state, were

25 dismissed on summary judgment. Dkt 124. 26

PFAU COCHRAN PARTIES’ JOINT PRETRIAL ORDER VERTETIS | AM ALA No. 3:13-CV-05974-MJP | Page 3 909 A Street, Suite 700

1 a. Monell Claim 2 The only Monell claim remaining against the City is based upon plaintiffs’ theory of 3 ratification. Judge Leighton held that: 4 Municipalities are required to review police shootings and carefully determine 5 whether the shooting complied with local policy, and then determine whether or not 6 discipline is appropriate. A rational jury could find that Clark’s decision to shoot was not constitutionally justified, and that Tacoma ratified that unconstitutional decision 7 by determining it was lawful and within policy. g Summary judgment on the Monell claim against Tacoma is accordingly DENIED. 9 Dkt 124, p. 12:11-15. Plaintiffs did not address Defendants’ summary judgment motion related 10 to the hiring, training and supervision claim, but instead changed to the ratification argument, ll upon with summary judgment was denied. Id. 12 b.

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Orn v. City of Tacoma, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/orn-v-city-of-tacoma-wawd-2020.