Reeves v. City of West Liberty, Kentucky

219 F. Supp. 3d 600, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 163953, 2016 WL 7007498
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Kentucky
DecidedNovember 29, 2016
DocketCivil Action No. 15-81-HRW
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 219 F. Supp. 3d 600 (Reeves v. City of West Liberty, Kentucky) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Kentucky primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Reeves v. City of West Liberty, Kentucky, 219 F. Supp. 3d 600, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 163953, 2016 WL 7007498 (E.D. Ky. 2016).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

Henry R. Wilholt, Jr., United States District Judge

This matter is before the Court upon Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment [Docket No. 28]. The motion has been fully briefed by the parties [Docket Nos. 28-1, 29 and 30], For the reasons set forth herein, the Court finds that summary judgment is not appropriate as to any of Plaintiffs claims except for his claim for defamation.

I.

This case arises from Plaintiff Bryan Reeves’ arrest for DUI. In his Complaint, Plaintiff states that on September 28, 2014, at about 12:02 a.m., that he, while operating his automobile, in a lawful and proper manner, was stopped by the Defendant, Justin Flannery, a police officer, employed by the City of West Liberty, Kentucky. After the Plaintiffs vehicle was stopped, [602]*602Kentucky State Troopers also responded to the call. [Complaint, Docket No. 1-1,¶ 3]. Plaintiff alleges that he was asked by the police officers to get out of the car, and perform field sobriety tests. Specifically, the Plaintiff submitted to, and passed, the eye nystagmus examination four (4) times, once for each of the Kentucky State Troopers, and twice for the Defendant Flannery. Plaintiff informed Defendant Flannery that he had prior surgeries to his leg. Id. at ¶ 4. Defendant Flannery arrested for driving under the influence and took him into custody. Plaintiff was then transported to a local jail, where he underwent a strip search, including a body cavity search Id.

Blood tests later revealed that Plaintiff did not have alcohol or other controlled substances in his system and the charge was, ultimately, dismissed. This lawsuit followed.

Plaintiff claims that Defendant Flannery arrested him without probable cause, thereby violating his rights under the United States Constitution, and the Kentucky Constitution, specifically the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the United States Constitution, and Section 10 of the Kentucky Constitution. Further, Plaintiff alleges that Defendant Flannery The police officer, employed by the City of West Liberty, acted intentionally, while violating the Plaintiffs constitutional rights, and did so knowingly, while acting under color of law, in violation of 42 U.S.C. Section 1983. In addition, Plaintiff alleges that a result, he suffered personal injury to his body, including mental anguish, and physical, and mental pain and suffering, including physical, and mental pain and suffering, reasonably likely to be incurred in the future, as well as psychological injury inflicted upon the Plaintiff, for which treatment in the future is reasonably likely. Id. at ¶ 7. Finally, Plaintiff claims that subsequent to his arrest, an article appeared in the local newspaper which stated that he had been arrested and listed the charge. Id. at ¶ 9. He claims this to be a basis for a claim of defamation against the Defendants.

Defendants seek judgment as a matter of law as to all claim alleged against them. In addition to denying violation of either federal or state law, Defendants maintain they are entitled to qualified immunity,

II.

Summary judgment is appropriate if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and affidavits show there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Fed.R.Civ.P. 56. The burden to show that there are no genuine issues of material fact falls on the parties seeking summary judgment. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322-23, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). “Credibility determinations, the weighing of the evidence, and the drawing of legitimate inferences from the facts are jury functions, not those of a judge[.]” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). This Court will consider the evidence in the light most favorable to the non-moving parties, drawing all justifiable inferences in their favor. Id. The ultimate question is whether the evidence presents a sufficient factual disagreement to require submission of the case to the jury, or whether the evidence is so one-sided that the moving parties should prevail as a matter of law. Id. at 251-52, 106 S.Ct. 2505.

III.

This case hinges upon probable cause. Although “state law defines the offense for which an officer may arrest a person, ... federal law dictates whether [603]*603probable cause existed for an arrest.” Kennedy v. City of Villa Hills, 635 F.3d 210, 215 (6th Cir. 2011). Probable cause for an arrest “quite familiarly, depends on ‘whether, at the moment the arrest was made, ... the facts and circumstances within [the officers’] knowledge and of which they had reasonably trustworthy information were sufficient to warrant a prudent man in believing that the [defendant] had committed or was committing an offense.’” United States v. Harness, 453 F.3d 752, 754 (6th Cir. 2006) (quoting Beck v. Ohio, 379 U.S. 89, 91, 85 S.Ct. 223, 13 L.Ed.2d 142 (1964)). Whether probable cause exists in a particular situation, however, is often difficult to determine. The probable-cause standard is incapable of precise definition or quantification into percentages because it deals with probabilities and depends on the totality of the circumstances. See Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 232, 103 S.Ct. 2317, 76 L.Ed.2d 527 (1983). “The substance of all the definitions of probable cause is a reasonable ground for belief of guilt and that' the belief of guilt must be particularized with respect to the person to be searched ór seized.” Maryland v. Pringle, 540 U.S. 366, 371, 124 S.Ct. 795, 157 L.Ed.2d 769 (2003), “Generally, the existence of probable cause in a § 1983 action presents a jury question, unless there is only one reasonable determination possible.” Pyles v. Raisor, 60 F.3d 1211, 1215 (6th Cir. 1995) (emphasis added).

In support of their motion and their argument that Defendant Flannery had adequate probable cause upon which to arrest Plaintiff, Defendants present the deposition testimony of Plaintiff, Defendant Flannery as well as two Kentucky State Troopers. Defendants contend that the deposition testimony tells a different tale than the one. set forth in the Complaint.

Kentucky State Trooper Luke Goodwin testified that he first saw Plaintiffs vehicle as it departed city limits of West Liberty on 519 and 7, where the two roads merge. [Deposition of Luke Goodwin, Docket No. 26, p. 8].

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
219 F. Supp. 3d 600, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 163953, 2016 WL 7007498, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/reeves-v-city-of-west-liberty-kentucky-kyed-2016.