Raina Connor v. Tavares Thompson

647 F. App'x 231
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
DecidedMay 2, 2016
Docket15-1353
StatusUnpublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 647 F. App'x 231 (Raina Connor v. Tavares Thompson) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Raina Connor v. Tavares Thompson, 647 F. App'x 231 (4th Cir. 2016).

Opinion

Affirmed in part and dismissed in part by unpublished PER CURIAM opinion.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

PER CURIAM:

Todd McElfresh called 911 to request help transporting his nephew, Adam Carter, to a local psychiatric hospital because Carter was threatening to kill himself. Tavares Thompson, a Wake County, North Carolina, Sheriffs Deputy, was the first to respond. When Thompson encountered Carter, the latter was holding what appeared to be a paring knife. Thompson, upon seeing the knife, instructed Carter to drop it. When Carter failed to comply, Thompson fired his gun twice. Both shots struck Carter, resulting in his death.

Raina Connor, 1 acting as the administra-trix of Carter’s estate, (“Appellee”) subsequently sued Thompson, along with Wake County Sheriff Donnie Harrison and the Ohio Casualty Insurance Company (collectively, “Appellants”). 2 Appellee’s complaint alleges, inter alia, that Thompson’s actions constitute excessive force and assault and battery, and that the Wake County Sheriff failed to provide adequate training and supervision to its employees and is liable for Carter’s death pursuant to Monell v. New York City Department of Social Services, 436 U.S. 668, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 66 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978). The district court denied Appellants’ motion for summary judgment on each of these claims, and Appellants filed this appeal in response. We affirm in part and dismiss in part.

I.

A.

On February 11, 2012, Adam Carter was living with his uncle, Todd McElfresh, in Raleigh, North Carolina, along with a third roommate, Tom Boykin. When McElfresh and Boykin woke that morning, they found Carter drunk and suicidal. Carter, who struggled with alcoholism, indicated that he was willing to speak to a doctor. Carter told his uncle that he “need[ed] ... help,” J.A. 574, 3 and later asked McElfresh to “[c]all Holly Hill,” id. at 586, which is a psychiatric hospital in Raleigh. McElfresh made the call, but nobody answered.

McElfresh then called a friend, who, after listening to an explanation of Carter’s situation, advised McElfresh to call 911. McElfresh did get an answer there, and after emergency responders were en route, the dispatcher stayed on the line *234 and tried to talk Carter out of attempting suicide.

The efforts were not entirely successful. After speaking to the dispatcher for a few minutes, Carter handed the phone back to McElfresh, and walked to the kitchen. He retrieved a paring knife and attempted, unsuccessfully, to cut his wrist while Boy-kin tried to talk him out of it.

Deputy Thompson arrived shortly thereafter. He met McElfresh outside the house and followed him into an entrance foyer. McElfresh then proceeded alone up a four-step stairwell leading to the living room where Carter was waiting. McEl-fresh told Carter that his ride had arrived, and both men started downstairs toward the foyer. Carter was still holding the paring knife he had used to try to cut his wrist.

Thompson saw the knife when Carter was about halfway down the four stairs. He drew his gun and told Carter to drop the knife. The command was repeated several times, by Thompson as well as McElfresh and Boykin, but Carter did not comply. When Carter reached the bottom of the stairs, Thompson fired twice, killing him.

B.

Aside from this general description, the parties dispute what exactly happened between the time Thompson saw the knife and the time he fired his weapon. The district court properly recognized that, at the summary judgment stage, all disputes of material fact must be resolved in favor of Appellee, the non-moving party. Given the posture of this appeal, we must accept, 4 and therefore incorporate, the district court’s characterization of the disputed facts:

[T]he details of the brief time (mere second[s] to minutes) between Deputy Thompson entering the residence and the firing of his weapon[] are disputed.... Chief among the disputes are (1) exactly where Deputy Thompson was standing in relation to the front door (whether back against a wall or directly in front of the door); (2) the position of the knife during Carter’s descent on the stairs (whether he changed hands, raised the knife, etc.); and, (3) Carter’s speed and agility in descending the stairs (whether falling down drunk or lunging at the deputy). However, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving party, here the plaintiff, the court notes the following evidence: Thompson testified that he saw Carter with the knife in his hand while Carter was on the second step and while Thompson had just crossed the threshold of the front door. The front door remained opened at all times. The knife Carter had in his hand was a smáll paring knife. Carter slowly staggered down two steps while holding on to the wall to support himself. McElfresh testified that Carter never rushed toward Thompson or made any aggressive moves or steps.

Conner ex rel. Carter v. Wake Cty., No. 5:12-cv-701, 2015 WL 1125065, at *2 (E.D.N.C. Mar. 12, 2015).

C.

Based on the foregoing, Appellee sued Appellants, on October 25, 2012, in the United States District Court -for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Appellee’s Third Amended Complaint asserts in relevant part causes of action for excessive force, inadequate training and supervision, and Monell liability pursuant to 42 U.S.C. *235 § 1983, as well as assault and battery pursuant to North Carolina state law.

On May 80, 2014, Appellants moved for summary judgment. The district court denied the motion with respect to each claim at issue in this appeal. It found “substantial fact questions in dispute which preclude the entry of summary judgment as to the excessive force claim.” Conner, 2015 WL 1125065, at *3. It further reasoned, “[a]s summary judgment on the excessive force claim is precluded because of disputed facts, so also is a decision on qualified immunity at this stage of the litigation,” id., and the court went on to deny summary judgment on the Monell liability, inadequate training and supervision, and assault and battery claims as well. Appellants timely appealed.

II.

“We review de novo a district court’s decision to deny a summary judgment motion asserting qualified immunity. Summary judgment is appropriate ‘if the mov-ant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.’ ” Smith v. Ray, 781 F.3d 95, 100 (4th Cir.2015) (citation omitted) (quoting Fed. R.Civ.P. 56(a)). “In reviewing [a] district court’s decision denying qualified immunity, we generally accept the facts as the court viewed them.” Danser v. Stansberry,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
647 F. App'x 231, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/raina-connor-v-tavares-thompson-ca4-2016.