Stalter v. State

113 Wash. App. 1
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedAugust 9, 2002
DocketNos. 27118-4-II; 27351-9-II
StatusPublished

This text of 113 Wash. App. 1 (Stalter v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stalter v. State, 113 Wash. App. 1 (Wash. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

Seinfeld, J.

— This case requires us to determine if a

county has a duty to confirm the identity of a person detained in its jail under authority of an arrest warrant after the detainee claims misidentification. Kevin Stalter and David Brooks each made this claim, and they allege that Pierce County failed to respond. After their eventual release, they each sued the County, asserting, inter alia, false imprisonment. The trial court dismissed their claims on summary judgment.

We hold that once a county is on notice that a detainee in its custody may not be the person described in the relevant arrest warrant, the county has a duty to take further reasonable steps to verify the detainee’s identity. As Stalter and Brooks have raised questions of material fact as to the County’s response, we reverse and remand their negligence and false imprisonment claims for trial. We affirm the dismissal of Brooks’ 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claim.

FACTS

Stalter v. Pierce County

On Saturday, August 9, 1997, Washington State Trooper Jeremy Reid stopped Kevin Stalter for a driving infraction [5]*5and arrested him under authority of a warrant for Robert Stalter. The warrant did not indicate any aliases for Robert but a dispatcher informed Reid that Robert was known to use the alias “Kevin.” Stalter’s Clerk’s Papers (SCP) at 40.1

Stalter told Reid that he was not Robert and explained that Robert was his brother. Further, Stalter was four inches taller, 27 pounds heavier, had a different eye color, and had a different birth date than the person described in the warrant. Nonetheless, Reid transported Stalter to the Pierce County Jail and the jail, relying on Reid’s assurance that the detainee was in fact Robert Stalter, booked him under the name of Kevin Stalter.

Stalter told the booking officer two or three times that he was not Robert, again explaining that Robert was his brother. The booking officer had never seen anyone so adamant about not being the person named in the warrant and called a senior officer for assistance. The senior officer told Stalter that he would be booked and then it was up to IDENT2 or the courts to determine who he was.

Jail staff escorted Stalter to court two days later for arraignment. There, Robert Stalter’s probation officer informed the court that the detainee was not Robert Stalter. The court then ordered Stalter released.

Stalter sued multiple parties, alleging multiple theories. Only the false imprisonment and negligence claims against the County are at issue here.

The County moved for summary judgment, supporting its motion with the declaration of Lt. James Blanchard, a shift commander and supervisor at the jail. Blanchard stated that the booking officers are required only to “determine that the arrest and confinement of each prisoner is being accomplished by a duly authorized officer” and that jail staff may not release prisoners booked under a mistaken iden[6]*6tity unless they receive a court order “after proper identification is established at the prisoner’s arraignment.” SCP at 38.

Stalter responded with a declaration from a booking officer who indicated that while it is not unusual for detainees to claim misidentification initially, they usually admit to being the person named in the warrant after they see it. The booking officer explained that the jail staff’s usual procedure is to obtain the detainee’s identification information from the warrant and from the detainee and then to forward the information to IDENT, which photographs and fingerprints the detainee.

The booking officer believed that IDENT positively identified detainees by examining their fingerprints; he was unaware of any jail policy or procedure requiring booking officers to confirm the booking information.

The booking officer said that there was a booking file on Robert Stalter, which included a photograph, and that although he could have requested Robert’s records, he was unaware of any policy requiring him to do so. He indicated that even if he had compared the records and discovered the discrepancy, he would not have had the authority to take any action as the booking decision was entirely up to his supervisor and the arresting officer.

Stalter also submitted portions of the jail policy and procedure manual. The manual requires booking officers to obtain 18 pieces of general information from the detainee “[i]n order to provide for a positive identification of the person being admitted.”3 SCP at 114. The manual further requires photographing and fingerprinting of the detainee during the booking process; this information goes into the [7]*7detainee’s custody file. The manual does not address how to respond to a detainee’s assertion of misidentification.

In granting the County’s summary judgment motion, the trial court found that (1) Reid, the arresting officer, was properly authorized and properly presented Stalter to the jail, (2) the County had followed its booking policies, including its policy that the court was to resolve identity questions, and (3) the County had no duty to investigate Stalter’s identity. Stalter appeals.

Brooks v. Pierce County

On Friday, October 9,1998, an officer from the Fife Police Department stopped David W. Brooks, Jr., for a traffic violation and subsequently arrested him under a warrant out of North Carolina. Brooks had the same name, was the same race and gender, and had the same birth date as the person named in the warrant.

Brooks immediately told the officer that he had never been to North Carolina and was not the person named in the warrant. He continued to assert misidentification as the officer transported him to the Fife Police Station. At the station, a dispatcher confirmed the warrant and informed the officer that North Carolina wanted to extradite Brooks.

Brooks subsequently was transferred to the Pierce County Jail where he continued to claim misidentification. In response, the hooking officer told Brooks that they would do a “positive identification” and would release him if what he said was true. Brooks’ Clerk’s Papers (BCP) at 97.

Brooks was fingerprinted, photographed, and transferred to a holding cell. The officer escorting Brooks to the holding cell again told him that there would be a positive identification and that he would be released if what he said was true.

On October 12, the Monday following his arrest, Brooks appeared in court. He informed his assigned counsel that he was not the person named in the warrant, but, according to [8]*8the transcript from the hearing that day, Brooks’ counsel did not advise the court of the misidentification claim.

The court ordered that Brooks be held without bail and set a court date for November 12. According to Brooks’ declaration, he did not have an opportunity to speak to the court. Following the hearing, Brooks’ assigned counsel told him that he had to obtain private counsel, which Brooks did.

Also on October 12, the Law Enforcement Support Agency (LESA)4 notified North Carolina that Brooks was in custody; on October 14, it notified North Carolina that Brooks had refused to waive extradition. LESA then requested certified copies of the warrant, photographs, and fingerprints.

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Bluebook (online)
113 Wash. App. 1, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stalter-v-state-washctapp-2002.