Police Misconduct Attorney Jerry L. Steering has been suing the police since 1984 for police brutality, false arrests, malicious criminal prosecutions and First Amendment retaliation cases. Mr. Steering in an Expert and Specialist in suing the police in federal court for constitutional violations in the City of San Diego County, throughout San Diego County and throughout the State of California. Mr. Steering has also sued the government as far away as in federal court in Alabama and in the District of Columbia. Mr. Steering many years of experience and acquired knowledge can help you maximize your chances of actually winning your Police Misconduct Civil Rights case, and winning is the only thing that matters. As the old saying goes, “The young lawyer knows the law, but the old lawyer knows the Judge”. THE SAN DIEGO POLICE DEPARTMENT IS OFTEN A BRUTAL AGENCY THAT IS INSTITUTIONALLY DISHONEST The San Diego Police Department is often a brutal, and sometimes homicidal police agency; no joke. Today’s police officers take no chances at all with their personal safety, and if shooting someone who might possibly threat to their safety, they will shoot and kill that potential, but not actual or imminent threat. See, for example, SDPD facing excessive force lawsuit after unarmed man shot at, bit by K-9, FOX 5/KUSI, November 13, 2024; Domestic violence suspect sues San Diego police officer who shot him after he fled with baby, Los Angeles Times, September 28, 2024; Authorities investigate deadly police shooting downtown, January 28, 2025, FOX 5/KUSI, January 28, 2025 and Yale doctoral graduate fatally shot by San Diego police officer and deputies, Yale News, April 8, 2022. However, most of the time that San Diego Police Department police officers beat or tase or pepper-spray, and falsely arrest and procure the malicious criminal prosecution, is when they perceive a civilian as being in “Contempt of Cop“. See, The “Contempt of Cop Game”; How Well Can You Play?, steeringlaw. “Contempt of Cop” situations arise when a civilian verbally protests or verbally challenges orders or actions of a police officer. Verbal protests or verbal challenges to police orders or actions have long held to be constitutionally protected conduct. For example, in striking down a City of Houston, Texas, Municipal Ordinance that criminalized interruption of a police officer in the performance of his/her duties, as unconstitutional, the United States Supreme Court held: “The Houston ordinance is much more sweeping than the municipal ordinance struck down in Lewis. It is not limited to fighting words nor even to obscene or opprobrious language, but prohibits speech that “in any manner . . . interrupt[s]” an officer. The Constitution does not allow such speech to be made a crime. The freedom of individuals verbally to oppose or challenge police action without thereby risking arrest is one of the principal characteristics by which we distinguish a free nation from a police state.” See, Houston v. Hill, 482 U.S. 451 (1987). Brennan, J. However, notwithstanding this longstanding and fundamental principle differentiating between free society and a police state, the San Diego Police Department very often ignore this admonition from the Supreme Court, and beat or tase or pepper-spray, and thereafter falsely arrest and maliciously prosecute those “guilty” of “Contempt of Cop” for various fabricated “resistance offenses”, such as violation of Cal. Penal Code § 69 (resisting officer with force), Cal. Penal Code § 148(a)(1) (resisting/delaying/obstructing a officer), Cal. Penal Code § 240/241 (assault on officer), Cal. Penal Code § 242 / 243(b) & (c) (battery on officer causing injury) and Cal. Penal Code § 245(c) (assault on officer with weapon). The falsely arrest procure the malicious criminal prosecutions for these various fabricated “resistance offenses” to attempt to justify their outrages, and to protect themselves from civil liability by abuse of the criminal prosecution process via Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477 (1994)(any conviction precludes civil claim for false arrest) and via the Doctrine of Collateral Estoppel (cannot relitigate issues of fact or law determined against one in prior judicial proceeding). IF YOU ARE THE VICTIM OF POLICE MISCONDUCT BY THE SAN DIEGO POLICE DEPARTMENT JERRY L. STEERING CAN HELP YOU. As the old saying goes, “The young lawyer knows the law, but the old lawyer knows the Judge”. Mr. Steering’s many years of experience and knowledge in suing the police can help you maximize your chances of winning your Police Misconduct Civil Rights case, and winning is the only thing that matters. Just because the police violated your constitutional rights doesn’t mean that you can do anything about it. In order to “do something about it”, to enforce your constitutional rights, it takes a great deal of experience, insights, skill and savvy. Jerry L. Steering has been suing police agencies for constitutional violations since 1984. He has the experience, insights, skill and savvy to actually win your police misconduct civil rights case, and winning is the only thing that matters. If you are the victim of police misconduct, Jerry L. Steering can help you. Call Jerry L. Steering, Esq. at (949) 474-1849, or email Mr. Steering at jerry@steeringlaw.com . FREE CASE EVALUATION
