Appeals Court: No Immunity For Cops Who Punched A Man Hanging From A Second Story Window And Tased Him When He Hit The Ground

from the I-didn't-see-a-weapon-but-I-didn't-*not*-see-a-weapon-either dept

It takes a lot to lose your qualified immunity, but these cops -- who punched a man's head while he hung from a bedroom windowsill ten feet off the ground and tased him after he fell and broke his leg -- managed to do it.

This Second Circuit Appeals Court decision [PDF] also contains one of the most astounding bits of cop-speak I've ever seen, but we'll start where it starts: with cops chasing a man clad only in boxer shorts, a t-shirt, and flip-flops.

The suspect was startled by officers serving a search warrant and made a run for it. Officers originally suspected Jose Peroza-Benitez had a weapon on him. One officer saw the suspect drop the gun on the roof during the pursuit. Other officers at the scene said the gun then fell to the ground in an alley. Peroza-Benitez denied having a firearm on him at any point, but officers did recover one from the scene.

But where exactly at the scene remains disputed. The report said it was found in the suspect's possession. But every officer sued agreed it was not on his person when they finally arrested him. The chase ended when Peroza-Benitez climbed out of a second story window and then ran out of escape options. As he dangled by his hands (which clearly did not contain a gun), he was approached by C.I. (Criminal Investigator) Kevin Haser who, despite recognizing a fall from that height might injure the suspect, decided to get physical.

According to Peroza-Benitez, as he was hanging from the windowsill with his hands, his feet “dangling,” C.I. Haser “repeatedly” punched him in the temple region of his head with a closed fist. App. 173. C.I. Haser testified that he punched Peroza-Benitez “[o]ne or two times . . . . [p]robably two,” with the purpose being to “stun” and “disorient” Peroza-Benitez into compliance “to help him out.”

That's a weird way of helping. Haser's next attempt to "help out" was even weirder.

It is unclear from the record when the officers let go of Peroza-Benitez. Nevertheless, at a certain point, C.I. Haser thought “we’re like, screw it, you want to fall, you’re gonna fall. So we let go of him.”

Peroza-Benitez fell. And as he fell, Officer Daniel White made quite the set of observations:

Officer White indicated to his fellow officers that he was ready to assist should Peroza-Benitez fall. Officer White did not observe a weapon, or “the absence of one,” in Peroza-Benitez’s hands as he fell from the window.

Schrodinger's weapon: one that exists in two states until an officer feels comfortable testifying one way or the other. Officer White's did/didn't statement was made to excuse his response to the suspect falling and breaking his leg: the deployment of his Taser.

Officer White tased Peroza-Benitez after he struck the concrete steps. Officer White, without providing a verbal warning, deployed his taser in dart mode for a 5-second cycle. Accounts differ as to the exact duration of time that elapsed between Peroza-Benitez landing in the stairwell and getting tased, ranging from “as soon as he hit the concrete” to “less than five seconds.” However, the parties agree that Peroza-Benitez was tased either immediately or almost immediately upon landing.

Some of the cops (including Officer White) claimed the suspect "lunged forward" as if he was going to start running on his broken leg. The plaintiff claims he was temporarily knocked out after his head hit the concrete. Both Officer White and C.I. Haser claimed qualified immunity shielded their actions. The Second Circuit says they're both wrong.

Here, Peroza-Benitez was unarmed, injured, covered in his own blood, and hanging from a second-story window by his hands, feet dangling, when C.I. Haser – knowing Peroza-Benitez to be unarmed – punched him “repeatedly” in the head with a closed fist. C.I. Haser’s punches “stunned and disoriented” Peroza-Benitez, causing him to fall over ten feet into a below-ground concrete stairwell. Accordingly, we rely on a modification of the District Court’s definition: The Fourth Amendment right of an injured, visibly unarmed suspect to be free from temporarily paralyzing force while positioned at a height that carries with it a risk of serious injury or death.

Previous case law dealing with stunning suspects in precarious positions all deal with Taser deployments. The end result is the key, not the method used.

Officer Smith – who was with C.I. Haser at the window – testified that it is “against protocol” to “tase someone on the roof” because if “they fall off, that’s not going to be good. We’re not gonna tase someone that’s on a roof.” App. 53. The same exact logic applies to deliberately punching someone “to stun” them, App. 187, when that person is hanging out of a window.

The same goes for Officer White. Case law may not be exactly on point but a reasonable officer should know that tasing a possibly unconscious person was excessive force.

Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to Peroza-Benitez – again, as we must do at summary judgment – Peroza-Benitez was tased by Officer White while lying unconscious after having fallen over 10 feet into a below-ground, concrete stairwell. The duration of time that elapsed between Peroza-Benitez hitting the ground and getting tased does not change the fact that, in the light most favorable to Peroza-Benitez, he was tased while visibly unconscious and after multiple seconds had elapsed, App. 264, such that a reasonable jury could find that Officer White should have known that he was tasing an unconscious individual.

The case heads back to the lower court and -- if this law enforcement agency chooses not to settle -- a jury will get to decide whether or not rights were violated. According to what the court sees here -- and the admissions made by the officers involved -- there's a pretty good chance this will end in the plaintiff's favor. More factual development isn't going to change the fact one cop said "screw it" and let the suspect fall. And it won't change Officer White's response to someone falling off a second-story windowsill into an alley filled with cops: a swift tasing of someone in no position to escape.

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Filed Under: 2nd circuit, police, qualified immunity