Arcadia Police Misconduct Attorney Jerry L. Steering is a Specialist and Expert in Police Misconduct Lawsuits, who has been suing the state and local police officers since 1984. Mr. Steering sues police officers for police brutality – excessive force, false arrests, malicious criminal prosecutions and wrongful deaths from police shootings and smotherings. ALTHOUGH NOT AS BRUTAL AS SOME OTHER POLICE AGENCIES, DON’T MOUTH-OFF TO THE ARCADIA POLICE IF YOU DON’T WANT TO GET BEATEN AND FALSELY ARRESTED. Unlike many other cities in Angeles County, the City of Arcadia has its own police force, located at 240 West Huntington Drive, Arcadia, California. Although Arcadia Police Officers do not have the barbaric reputation as some other Los Angeles County law enforcement agencies, the Arcadia Police still arrest and beat-up innocents in “Contempt of Cop” incidents; verbal protest and challenge to police actions and orders; actions that are constitutionally protected (See, City of Houston v. Hill, 482 U.S. 451 (1987)), but actions will nonetheless get one beaten, falsely arrested, and sometimes maliciously prosecuted. Arcadia Police Officers usually don’t just walk up to someone and start beating them, unless they were involved in some sort of police pursuit, like running away from the police, or leading the police on vehicles pursuits. Like Chris Rock stated in his famous HBO video “How not to get your ass kicked by the police!”, if the police have to come running after you, they are bringing an ass-whopping with them”. That is reality. BECAUSE IT TAKES A GREAT DEAL OF EXPERIENCE, KNOWLEDGE AND SAVY TO ACTUALLY WIN A POLICE MISCONDUCT CASE IN FEDERAL COURT, YOU NEED A SKILLED POLICE MISCONDUCT SPECIALIST LIKE JERRRY L. STEERING TO ENFORCE YOUR CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS. A Constitutional Right only exists in the real world if it can be enforced. After all, a right without a real world practical remedy is no right at all. It’s just a “parchment barrier“. These are two main obstacles to even getting your case to be heard by a jury; the Doctrine of Qualified Immunity, and a federal court jury of mostly cop-loving jurors. MANY CASES ARE DISMISSED BY THE COURT BEFORE ANY TRIAL UNDER THE DOCTRINE OF QUALIFIED IMMUNITY. These days, the Doctrine of Qualified Immunity rules the day. Under the Doctrine of Qualified Immunity, even if the District Court finds that the police violated your federal constitutional rights, unless the law regarding the federal constitutional right at issue in your case is “clearly established”, you still lose because the police are immune from suit. See, A Practical Cure for the Curse of Qualified Immunity. The Doctrine of Qualified Immunity used to be called the “good-faith defense”;that the violating officer reasonably and in good-faith didn’t believe his/her actions were a constitutional violation. In more recent times, the use of the Doctrine of Qualified Immunity has reached absurd levels of use. For example, in Jessop v. City of Fresno, No. 17-16756 (9th Cir. 2019), Fresno, California police officers are alleged to have stolen $276,000.00 in cash and coins from Mr. Jessop during a search warrant execution at his home. In awarded the violating police officers Qualified Immunity from Mr. Jessop’s claim that the officer’s stealing of his money was an “unreasonable seizure” of his property under the 4th Amendment to the United States Constitution, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held: “We sympathize with Appellants. They allege the theft of their personal property by police officers sworn to uphold the law. If the City Officers committed the acts alleged, their actions were morally reprehensible. Not all conduct that is improper or morally wrong, however, violates the Constitution. Because Appellants did not have a clearly established Fourth or Fourteenth Amendment right to be free from the theft of property seized pursuant to a warrant, the City Officers are entitled to qualified immunity.” This, of course is an absurd ruling. If police literally stealing the property of another doesn’t constitute an “unreasonable seizure” of one’s property under the 4th Amendment, than nothing does. However, this case shows had badly the Doctrine of Qualified Immunity is being abused by the Courts to protect the police from you. Jessop’s case never made it to a jury. His case was dismissed on the officers’ Motion for Summary Judgment. EVEN IF YOU GET PAST SUMMARY JUDGMENT AND HAVE A JURY DECIDE YOUR CASE, GETTING A UNANIMOUS JURY TO VOTE FOR YOU IS VERY DIFFICULT. It doesn’t matter what the Judge says, or what the law says, or what the jury instructions say, or even what the evidence clearly shows, if for some reason, a federal court jury is not going to unanimously vote for you in your police misconduct civil rights trial. That is, if you make it to trial and the Judge doesn’t toss your case earlier on in the proceedings. In a civil case, under the Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution, if you are suing for more than $20.00 (a 1791 figure), both sides are entitled to a trial by jury. Moreover, in federal court, the judge does almost all of the jury questioning (“voir dire”), and because each side to a civil trial in federal court only get three peremptory jury challenges, any prospective juror who has ever had a bad experience with the police or who doesn’t think they a basically honest men and women with a tough job, get booted from the jury. Accordingly, it’s very difficult to get a unanimous federal jury to vote for you and to condemn the police in federal court. It takes makes years of experience, study, knowledge and savy to get past Summary Judgment and to win your jury trial. In your police misconduct case, all that matters is whether you win you case. If you lose, you have no rights, because you cannot enforce them. CALL JERRY L. STEERING TO WIN YOUR POLICE MISCONDUCT CIVIL RIGHTS LAWSUIT. As the old saying goes, “The young lawyer know the law, but the old lawyer knows the Judge”. Jerry L. Steering has been suing the police since 1984. He knows how to maximize your chances of winning your case. If you have been the victim of a false arrest, or excessive force / police brutality, or a malicious criminal prosecution, or the survivor of a police caused wrongful death, call Jerry L. Steering at (949) 474-1849, or email Mr. Steering at jerry@steeringlaw.com. Police Misconduct Specialties: Excessive Force Concealing Evidence Destroying Evidence False Arrest K-9 Maulings Malicious Prosecution Police Beatings Police Brutality Police Shootings Whistle Blower Retaliation Wrongful Death FREE CASE EVALUATION
