Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-3_05-cv-00284/USCOURTS-cand-3_05-cv-00284-16/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 440
Nature of Suit: Other Civil Rights
Cause of Action: 28:1441 Petition for Removal- Civil Rights Act

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United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

ALEXIS CASTILLO,

Plaintiff,

 v.

CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN

FRANCISCO and PERRY HOLLIS, 

Defendants. /

No. C 05-00284 WHA

FINAL JURY INSTRUCTIONS

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 1 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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1.

Members of the jury, now that you have heard all the evidence and the arguments of the

attorneys, it is my duty to instruct you on the law which applies to this case. A copy of these

instructions will be available in the jury room for you to consult if you find it necessary.

2.

It is your duty to find the facts from all the evidence in the case. To those facts you will

apply the law as I give it to you. You must follow the law as I give it to you whether you agree

with it or not. You must not be influenced by any personal likes or dislikes, opinions,

prejudices, or sympathy. That means that you must decide the case solely on the evidence

before you. You will recall that you took an oath promising to do so at the beginning of the

case.

3.

In following my instructions, you must follow all of them and not single out some and

ignore others; they are all equally important. You must not read into these instructions or into

anything the court may have said or done any suggestion as to what verdict you should return

— that is a matter entirely up to you.

4.

The evidence from which you are to decide what the facts are consists of:

(1) The sworn testimony of any witness;

(2) The exhibits which have been received into evidence; and

(3) Any facts to which the lawyers have agreed or stipulated.

5.

In reaching your verdict, you may consider only the testimony and exhibits received into

evidence. Certain things are not evidence, and you may not consider them in deciding what the

facts are. I will list them for you:

(1) Arguments and statements by lawyers are not evidence. The

lawyers are not witnesses. What they have said in their opening

statements, closing arguments, and at other times is intended to help

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 2 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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you interpret the evidence, but it is not evidence. If the facts as you

remember them differ from the way the lawyers have stated them,

your memory of them controls.

(2) Questions and objections by lawyers are not evidence. Attorneys

have a duty to their clients to object when they believe a question is

improper under the rules of evidence. You should not be influenced

by the objection or by the court’s ruling on it.

(3) Testimony that has been excluded or stricken, or that you have been

instructed to disregard, is not evidence and must not be considered. 

In addition some testimony and exhibits have been received only

for a limited purpose; where I have given a limiting instruction, you

must follow it.

(4) Anything you may have seen or heard when the court was not in

session is not evidence. You are to decide the case solely on the

evidence received at the trial.

6.

Evidence may be direct or circumstantial. Direct evidence is direct proof of a fact, such

as testimony by a witness about what the witness personally saw or heard or did. Circumstantial

evidence is proof of one or more facts from which you could find another fact. You should

consider both kinds of evidence. The law makes no distinction between the weight to be given

to either direct or circumstantial evidence. It is for you to decide how much weight to give to

any evidence. 

7.

In deciding the facts in this case, you may have to decide which testimony to believe and

which testimony not to believe. You may believe everything a witness says, or part of it, or none

of it.

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 3 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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In considering the testimony of any witness, you may take into account:

(1) The opportunity and ability of the witness to see or hear or know

the things testified to;

(2) The witness’s memory;

(3) The witness’s manner while testifying;

(4) The witness’s interest in the outcome of the case and any bias or

prejudice;

(5) Whether other evidence contradicted the witness’s testimony;

(6) The reasonableness of the witness’s testimony in light of all the

evidence; and

(7) Any other factors that bear on believability.

The weight of the evidence as to a fact does not necessarily depend on the number of

witnesses who testify.

8.

You have heard testimony from persons who, because of education or experience, are

permitted to state opinions and the reasons for those opinions. Opinion testimony should be

judged just like any other testimony. You may accept it or reject it, and give it as much weight

as you think it deserves, considering the witness’s education and experience, the reasons given

for the opinion, and all the other evidence in the case.

9.

In examining an expert witness, counsel may ask a hypothetical question. This is a

question in which the witness is asked to assume the truth of a set of facts, and to give an opinion

based on that assumption. In permitting this type of question, the court does not rule, and does

not necessarily find that all the assumed facts have been proved. It only determines that those

assumed facts are within the possible range of the evidence. It is for you to decide from all the

evidence whether or not the facts assumed in a hypothetical question have been proved. If you

should decide that any assumption in a question has not been proved, you are to determine the

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 4 of 12
United States District Court

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effect of that failure of proof on the value and weight of the expert opinion based on the assumed

facts.

10.

Certain charts and summaries that have not been received in evidence have been shown

to you in order to help explain evidence in the case. They are not themselves evidence or proof

of any facts. If they do not correctly reflect the facts or figures shown by the evidence in the

case, you should disregard these charts and summaries and determine the facts from the

underlying evidence.

11.

You may consider whether a party failed to explain or deny some unfavorable evidence.

Failure to explain or to deny unfavorable evidence may suggest that the evidence is true.

12.

Discrepancies in a witness’s testimony or between a witness’s testimony and that of other

witnesses do not necessarily mean that any witness should be discredited. Failure of recollection

is common. Innocent misrecollection is not uncommon. Two persons witnessing an incident or

a transaction often will see or hear it differently. You should consider whether a discrepancy

pertains to an important matter or only to something trivial.

13.

A witness false in one part of his testimony is to be distrusted in others. You may reject

the entire testimony of a witness who willfully has testified falsely on a material point, unless,

from all the evidence, you believe that the probability of truth favors his testimony in other

particulars. 

14.

When a party has the burden of proof on any matter by a preponderance of the evidence,

it means you must be persuaded by the evidence that the matter is more probably true than not

true. You should base your decision on all of the evidence, regardless of which party presented

it.

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 5 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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15.

On any claim, if you find that each of the elements on which plaintiff Castillo has the

burden of proof has been proved, your verdict should be for him on that claim. 

16.

In this case, the Court has already ruled that the arrest itself was lawful. You must accept

that conclusion as a given. The main issue for you to decide is whether excessive force was used

in carrying out the arrest, for even when a lawful arrest is made, officers may not use excessive

force. 

17.

Plaintiff Alexis Castillo claims defendant Officer Perry Hollis used excessive force in

making a lawful arrest, and deprived him of the Fourth Amendment constitutional right to be

free from an unreasonable seizure. The application of handcuffs by a police officer constitutes

the use of force and the use of handcuffs so as to cause injury may constitute excessive force. 

A law enforcement officer has the right to use such force as is reasonably necessary

under the circumstances to make a lawful arrest. An unreasonable seizure occurs when a law

enforcement officer uses excessive force in making a lawful arrest. In deciding whether

excessive force was used, you should consider the totality of the circumstances at the time. The

reasonableness of a particular use of force must be judged objectively from the information

available at the time from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with

the 20/20 vision of hindsight. Police officers are not necessarily required to use the least

intrusive alternative but they are required to choose an alternative that is within a reasonable

range of conduct based on the facts and circumstances. 

Whether force is reasonably necessary or excessive is measured by the force a reasonable

and prudent law enforcement officer would use under the circumstances. Some of the things you

may want to consider in determining whether Officer Hollis used excessive force are the severity

of the crime at issue, whether plaintiff posed a reasonable threat to the safety of the officer or

others, any medical issues known to the officers, and whether plaintiff was actively resisting

detention or attempting to escape.

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 6 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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 18.

On plaintiff Castillo’s excessive-force claim against Officer Hollis, plaintiff has the

burden of proving each of the following elements by a preponderance of the evidence:

(1) The acts or omissions of Officer Hollis were intentional;

(2) He acted under color of law; and

(3) The acts or omissions of Officer Hollis were the cause of the

deprivation of plaintiff Castillo’s rights protected by the

Constitution or laws of the United States.

If you find that each of the elements on which plaintiff has the burden of proof has been

proved, your verdict should be for plaintiff. If, on the other hand, plaintiff has failed to prove

one or more of these elements, your verdict should be for defendant. The parties have stipulated

that defendant Officer Hollis acted under color of law.

 19.

The conduct of a defendant is a cause of harm to plaintiff if it is a substantial factor in

causing the harm. A substantial factor in causing harm is a factor that a reasonable person would

consider to have contributed to the harm. It does not have to be the only cause of the harm.

 20.

In this case, plaintiff Castillo has also sued the City and County of San Francisco. In

order to establish liability against defendant City and County of San Francisco, plaintiff Castillo

must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that he was a victim of excessive force in

violation of the Fourth Amendment by reason of an official policy of the City and County of

San Francisco. If you find that there was no excessive force, then you must find for the City and

County of San Francisco. On the other hand, if you find that there was excessive force in

violation of the Fourth Amendment, then you must determine whether plaintiff has proven by a

preponderance of the evidence that the Fourth Amendment violation was a result of an official

policy of the City and County of San Francisco. 

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 7 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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 21.

“Official policy” means:

(1) A rule or regulation promulgated, adopted or ratified by the

governmental entity’s legislative body; or 

(2) A policy statement or decision that is officially made by the city

and county’s policy-making official; or

(3) A custom that is a permanent, widespread, well-settled practice that

constitutes a standard operating procedure of the city and county; or

(4) An act or omission ratified by the city and county’s policy-making

official. 

 22.

It is the duty of the Court to instruct you about the measure of damages. By instructing

you on damages, the Court does not mean to suggest for which party your verdict should be

rendered. 

If you find for plaintiff Castillo, you must determine his damages. He has the burden of

proving damages by a preponderance of the evidence. Damages means the amount of money

which will reasonably and fairly compensate him for any injury you find was caused by

defendants. You should consider the following:

(1) The nature and extent of the injuries;

(2) The disability, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment of life experienced

and which with reasonable probability will be experienced in the

future;

(3) The mental, physical, emotional pain and suffering experienced and

which with reasonable probability will be experienced in the future;

(4) The reasonable value of necessary medical care, treatment, and

services received to the present time; provided, however, that if

defendants have shown that a lesser amount was accepted as

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 8 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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payment in full by the medical-care providers, then no more than

the lesser amount; 

(5) The reasonable value of necessary medical care, treatment, and

services which with reasonable probability will be required in the

future; and 

(6) The reasonable value of wages, earnings, earning capacity, salaries,

employment and employment opportunities lost before plaintiff

returned to work on January 26, 2005.

 23.

Plaintiff is not entitled to damages for any physical condition that he had before the

incident in question. However, if plaintiff had a physical condition that was made worse by

defendants’ wrongful conduct, you must award him damages that will reasonably and fairly

compensate him for the effect on that condition. 

 24.

Plaintiff Castillo has the burden of proving damages by a preponderance of the evidence,

and it is for you to determine what damages, if any, have been proved. Your award must be

based upon evidence and not upon speculation, guesswork or conjecture.

 25.

Plaintiff Castillo has a duty to use reasonable efforts to mitigate damages. To mitigate

damages means to avoid or reduce damages. Defendants have the burden of proving by a

preponderance of the evidence: 

(1) That plaintiff Castillo failed to use reasonable efforts to mitigate damages; and 

(2) The amount by which damages would have been mitigated.

 26.

You shall award damages in an amount that fully compensates plaintiff for damages in

accordance with instructions from the court. You shall not speculate or consider other possible

sources of benefit that plaintiff may have received. After you have returned your verdict the

court will make whatever adjustments in this regard. 

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 9 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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 27.

The law which applies to this case authorizes an award of nominal damages. If you find

for plaintiff Castillo but you find that he has failed to prove damages as defined in these

instructions, you must award nominal damages. Nominal damages may not exceed one dollar.

 28.

When you begin your deliberations, you should elect one member of the jury as your

presiding juror. That person will preside over the deliberations and speak for you here in court.

You will then discuss the case with your fellow jurors to reach agreement if you can do

so. Your verdict must be unanimous.

Each of you must decide the case for yourself, but you should do so only after you have

considered all of the evidence, discussed it fully with the other jurors, and listened to the views

of your fellow jurors.

Do not be afraid to change your opinion if the discussion persuades you that you should. 

Do not come to a decision simply because other jurors think it is right.

It is important that you attempt to reach a unanimous verdict but, of course, only if each

of you can do so after having made your own conscientious decision. Do not change an honest

belief about the weight and effect of the evidence simply to reach a verdict.

 29.

Some of you have taken notes during the trial. Whether or not you took notes, you

should rely on your own memory of what was said. Notes are only to assist your memory. You

should not be overly influenced by the notes.

 30.

As I noted before the trial began, when you retire to the jury room to deliberate, you will

have with you the following things: 

(1) All of the exhibits received into evidence;

(2) An index of the exhibits if the lawyers are able to stipulate as to its

form;

(3) A work copy of these jury instructions for each of you;

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 10 of 12
United States District Court

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(4) A work copy of the verdict form for each of you; and

(5) An official verdict form. 

When you recess at the end of a day, please place your work materials in the brown

envelope provided and cover up any easels with your work notes so that if my staff needs to go

into the jury room, they will not even inadvertently see any of your work in progress. 

 31.

If it becomes necessary during your deliberations to communicate with me, you may send

a note through the marshal, signed by your presiding juror or by one or more members of the

jury. No member of the jury should ever attempt to communicate with me except by a signed

writing; and I will communicate with any member of the jury on anything concerning the case

only in writing, or here in open court. If you send out a question, I will consult with the parties

before answering it, which may take some time. You may continue your deliberations while

waiting for the answer to any question. Remember that you are not to tell anyone — including

me — how the jury stands, numerically or otherwise, until after you have reached a unanimous

verdict or have been discharged. Do not disclose any vote count in any note to the Court.

 32.

Shortly after you retire to begin your deliberations, please send out a note signed by your

foreperson advising as what your hours for today will be so that counsel can be sure to be present

at all times when you are in session in case they are needed and so the Court can do likewise. 

You may only deliberate when all of you are together. This means, for instance, that in

the mornings before everyone has arrived, or when someone steps out of the jury room to go to

the restroom, you may not discuss the case. As well, the admonition that you are not to speak to

anyone outside the jury room about this case still applies during your deliberations. 

 33.

After you have reached a unanimous agreement on a verdict, your foreperson will fill in

the date, and sign the verdict form and advise the Court that you have reached a verdict. The

foreperson should hold onto the filled-in verdict form and bring it into the courtroom when the

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 11 of 12
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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jury returns the verdict. Thank you for your careful attention. The case is now in your hands.

You may now retire to the jury room and begin your deliberations. 

Dated: March 13, 2006. 

WILLIAM ALSUP

UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE 

Case 3:05-cv-00284-WHA Document 169 Filed 03/13/06 Page 12 of 12