Williams v. City & County of Denver

99 F.3d 1009, 1996 WL 638449
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedNovember 6, 1996
DocketNo. 94-1190
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 99 F.3d 1009 (Williams v. City & County of Denver) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Williams v. City & County of Denver, 99 F.3d 1009, 1996 WL 638449 (10th Cir. 1996).

Opinions

SEYMOUR, Chief Judge.

We are once again called upon to address the tragic aftermath of a high-speed collision caused by a police vehicle. The district court granted summary judgment for all defendants. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand for further proceedings.

I.

In reviewing a grant of summary judgment, we view the record in the light most favorable to the party against whom the judgment is granted. Cannon v. City & County of Denver, 998 F.2d 867, 870 (10th Cir.1993). Viewed in this light, the record reveals the following facts. The fatal collision occurred at approximately 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning, June 4, 1989. Officer Farr was responding to a request by another officer to back up the arrest of a car thief. Significantly, the requesting officer did not ask for an emergency response nor indicate that he was in danger. Officer Farr responded by driving down a major Denver boulevard at 60 m.p.h. in a 35 m.p.h. zone. Officer Farr activated his overhead lights but did not turn on his siren. The accident occurred when Officer Farr ran a red light without slowing down and broad-sided Randy Bartel’s vehicle, which was proceeding into the intersection on the green light at no more than 20 miles per hour. Mr. Bartel died from his injuries.

At the time Officer Farr applied for a position with the Denver Police Department, he had a very poor driving record. His license had been revoked three times, and he had been convicted of numerous traffic violations, including four convictions for speeding. Other law enforcement agencies had previously denied him employment at least four times. The executive director of the Denver Civil Service Commission strongly recommended that Officer Farr not be hired because of his driving record and felt that “he was an accident waiting to happen.” Aplt. App., vol. IV, at 1028. The director attached a handwritten note to Officer Farr’s file which stated: “Do not waste time on this one. Three suspensions. Flunks because of driving record.” Id. vol. I, at 167. The psychological report requested by the City1 with respect to Officer Farr’s application stated that he “may show a serious behavioral or emotional adjustment disorder” and “strongly recommended that follow-up testing and interviewing be conducted in order to determine the significance and range of these difficulties.” Id. vol. III, at 747. The report noted that Officer Farr showed “a significant history and/or pattern of motor vehicle infractions and driving difficulties. These are likely to include moving violations, automobile accidents, and, in some cases, driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.” Id. vol. I, at 233. Despite this report and another psychologist’s recommendation that the City investigate Officer Farr further, it did not conduct additional testing or inquiry before hiring him.

The City did not give Officer Farr any special or remedial driving training after hiring him, and he had nine incidents of unacceptable driving during the training he did receive.2 Prior to the collision at issue here, Officer Farr was involved in another accident in which he hit a ear while making a U-turn into oncoming traffic without using his emergency lights or siren. Officer Farr was found at fault and received a written reprimand. Although he was ordered to attend remedial driving training, he did not do so.

[1013]*1013State law and the Department’s written procedures both require emergency vehicles to use their lights and sirens and to slow down before entering controlled intersections if they are otherwise violating traffic laws. The record contains evidence that Denver police officers commonly respond to emergency calls without activating their sirens or reducing their speed at red lights or stop signs, and that the City has not taken steps to enforce compliance with the safety provisions. See, e.g., Aplt.App., vol. IV, at 1074-76, vol. III, at 937-45, vol. I, at 203, 207, 227-28.

Colleen Williams brought this action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 individually, and as the personal representative of Randy Bartel, her son. Ms. Williams sued Officer Michael Farr, the Denver Police Department and its Chief of Police, the Denver Manager of Safety, the Denver Civil Service Division and its members, and others. She alleged that the manner in which Officer Farr operated his police vehicle and the City’s deliberate indifference to the need to train, supervise, and/or discipline violated her son’s constitutional rights. She also alleged that the City was liable on the basis of its decision to hire Officer Farr. Finally, Ms. Williams alleged that defendants interfered with her constitutionally protected relationship with her son.

The district court granted summary judgment for defendants on ail claims. The court ruled that Ms. Williams’ claim for the deprivation of her right to familial association was precluded by Trujillo v. Board of County Comm’rs, 768 F.2d 1186 (10th Cir.1985), in which we held this claim requires an allegation that the defendant intended to interfere with the particular protected relationship. The district court also held that Officer Farr and the other officials sued individually were entitled to qualified immunity because the law governing the claims against them was not clearly established at the time of the collision. The court then ruled as a matter of law that Officer Farr’s conduct was not unconstitutional and that the claim against the City based on its failure to train or supervise must therefore fail. Finally, the court rejected Ms. Williams’ argument that the City could be held constitutionally liable for its own conduct absent a showing that Officer Farr’s actions amounted to a constitutional violation.

On appeal, Ms. Williams contends the district court erred in holding that the law was not clearly established with respect to her claim against defendants individually. She further argues that the court erred in holding for the City, asserting that a factual dispute' exists over whether Officer Farr’s conduct was unconstitutional and whether the City was deliberately indifferent to its need to train, supervise, and/or discipline. Ms. Williams also contends the court erred in holding the City could not be liable absent a constitutional violation by Officer Farr. Finally, she urges us to abandon the intent requirement Trujillo imposes on claims asserting deprivation of the right to familial association.

II.

Ms. Williams’ claims against the City are based both upon its alleged deliberate indifference to its need to institute training, supervision and discipline procedures on emergency driving, and upon its own conduct in hiring and training Officer Farr. The district court concluded as a matter of law that Officer Farr’s conduct was not unconstitutional and that the City’s policies and procedures -therefore could not support municipal liability based on Officer Farr’s conduct. The court also rejected Ms. Williams’ assertion that the City could be held liable on the basis of its own conduct absent a constitutional violation by Officer Farr. We disagree with both conclusions. We conclude that the evidence, viewed in the light most favorable to Ms. Williams, would support the conclusion that Officer Farr’s conduct was unconstitutional and that the City might be held liable for that conduct.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
99 F.3d 1009, 1996 WL 638449, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/williams-v-city-county-of-denver-ca10-1996.