Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King United States of America, David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King United States of America, David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King, United States of America David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger

28 F.3d 895
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
DecidedAugust 16, 1994
Docket93-2261
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 28 F.3d 895 (Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King United States of America, David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King United States of America, David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King, United States of America David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King United States of America, David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King United States of America, David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, Tina Marie Sellers, by and Through Her Guardian, Natural Mother, and Next Friend, Joann Sellers Albert F. Deuser Phyllis Menke v. Robert J. Baer John J. Frank James E. Mosbacher William H. Young Mayor Vincent Schoemehl Lawrence J. King, United States of America David Vecera, National Park Ranger Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, 28 F.3d 895 (8th Cir. 1994).

Opinion

28 F.3d 895

Tina Marie SELLERS, By and Through her guardian, natural
mother, and next friend, Joann SELLERS; Albert F.
Deuser; Phyllis Menke, Appellees,
v.
Robert J. BAER; John J. Frank; James E. Mosbacher;
William H. Young; Mayor Vincent Schoemehl;
Lawrence J. King; United States of
America, Defendants,
David Vecera, National Park Ranger; Edward Bridges,
National Park Ranger; Dennis Burnett, Chief
Ranger, Appellants.
Tina Marie SELLERS, By and Through her guardian, natural
mother, and next friend, Joann SELLERS; Albert F.
Deuser; Phyllis Menke, Appellees,
v.
Robert J. BAER; John J. Frank; James E. Mosbacher;
William H. Young; Mayor Vincent Schoemehl;
Lawrence J. King; United States of
America, Defendants,
David Vecera, National Park Ranger; Edward Bridges,
National Park Ranger; Dennis Burnett, Chief
Ranger, Appellants.
Tina Marie SELLERS, By and Through her guardian, natural
mother, and next friend, Joann SELLERS; Albert F.
Deuser; Phyllis Menke, Appellees,
v.
Robert J. BAER; John J. Frank; James E. Mosbacher;
William H. Young; Mayor Vincent Schoemehl;
Lawrence J. King, Appellants,
United States of America; David Vecera, National Park
Ranger; Edward Bridges, National Park Ranger;
Dennis Burnett, Chief Ranger, Defendants.

Nos. 93-2261, 93-2686, 93-3753.

United States Court of Appeals,
Eighth Circuit.

Submitted Feb. 14, 1994.
Decided July 8, 1994.
Rehearing and Suggestion for Rehearing En Banc Denied Aug.
16, 1994 in No. 93-2261.

Edward R. Cohen, Washington, DC, argued (Frank W. Hunger, Stephen B. Higgins, Barbara L. Herwig and Edward R. Cohen on the brief), for appellants.

James J. Wilson, St. Louis, MO, argued (Ronnie L. White and James J. Wilson on the brief), for appellants Robert J. Baer, et al.

Robert H. Pedroli, Clayton, MO, argued (James V. Lankford and Robert H. Pedroli, on the brief), for appellees.

Before BOWMAN, HANSEN, and MORRIS SHEPPARD ARNOLD, Circuit Judges.

BOWMAN, Circuit Judge.

Before us are appeals from the District Court's denial of motions by certain of the defendants for summary judgment on the ground of qualified immunity. We reverse.

I.

In the evening of July 4, 1986, at the annual Veiled Prophet fair at the Jefferson National Expansion Memorial in St. Louis, two National Park Rangers, Officers David Vecera and Edward Bridges, observed fairgoer Larry Deuser, in the midst of a milling throng of some 600,000 to 750,000 persons, randomly grabbing women by the buttocks. This conduct angered the women, and apparently some of their male companions as well. The rangers warned Deuser to keep his hands to himself, but he did not take this warning seriously. When Deuser urinated in public, the rangers arrested him. Deuser argued with the rangers and made offensive remarks to female fairgoers as the rangers escorted him to the rangers' tent on the fairgrounds.

The rangers met at the tent with Chief Ranger Dennis Burnett and decided to turn Deuser over to the St. Louis police. Because the St. Louis police department was, as a result of the fair and its attendant problems, too busy to process Deuser, the rangers, Burnett, and St. Louis police officer Lawrence King agreed to remove Deuser from the fairgrounds and set him free. Deuser was to be released far enough away from the fairgrounds that he would not have time to return to cause more trouble.

According to the rangers and King, they then took Deuser in a city police vehicle driven by King to the nearest police station, ten blocks from the fairgrounds, pulled into the parking lot behind the federal building, and allowed Deuser to leave the vehicle. Before they released him, the officers made Deuser promise not to return to the fairgrounds. Deuser did not have any money with him when he was released.

About an hour and one-half later, at approximately 10:30 p.m., a motorist struck and killed Deuser on an interstate highway about a mile and one-half from where Deuser had been released.1 At the time of his death, Deuser was highly intoxicated, his blood-alcohol level testing 0.214.

Tina Marie Sellers (Deuser's minor daughter, through her mother) and Albert Deuser and Phyllis Menke (Deuser's parents) brought this suit in federal court, raising various state and federal claims, including claims under Bivens2 against Vecera, Bridges, and Burnett, and under 42 U.S.C. Sec. 1983 against, in their official capacities, King and the members of the Board of Police Commissioners of the city of St. Louis.3 These claims allege, inter alia, that the conduct of Vecera, Bridges, Burnett, and King violated Deuser's Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment rights to substantive due process.4

In August 1990, the District Court granted the motion of Vecera, Bridges, and Burnett for summary judgment based on, in part, qualified immunity with respect to the Bivens claims. In April 1993, however, the court granted the plaintiffs' motion for reconsideration and vacated its prior order. In the same ruling, the court denied King's and the members of the Board's motions for summary judgment with respect to the Sec. 1983 claims in which King claimed qualified immunity with respect to those claims and both King and the members of the Board asserted that King's conduct did not amount to a constitutional violation. In so doing, the court relied on, and factually distinguished, Gregory v. City of Rogers, 974 F.2d 1006 (8th Cir.1992) (en banc), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 113 S.Ct. 1265, 122 L.Ed.2d 661 (1993). Vecera, Bridges, Burnett, and King appeal. See Mitchell v. Forsyth, 472 U.S. 511, 530, 105 S.Ct. 2806, 2817, 86 L.Ed.2d 411 (1985) (allowing interlocutory appeal from denial of summary judgment motion based on qualified immunity).5

II.

The moving parties are entitled to summary judgment if there is no genuine issue of material fact and they are entitled as a matter of law to judgment in their favor. Pentel v. City of Mendota Heights, 13 F.3d 1261, 1263 (1994). In this appeal we must decide whether the officers are entitled to summary judgment on the ground of qualified immunity. "[G]overnment officials performing discretionary functions generally are shielded from liability for civil damages insofar as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known." Harlow v. Fitzgerald, 457 U.S. 800, 818, 102 S.Ct. 2727, 2738, 73 L.Ed.2d 396 (1982). Our inquiry into the qualified immunity question thus must consider both the nature of the plaintiffs' claims and the state of the law with respect to such claims.

A.

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