Darragh K. Kasakoff , with whom Darragh K. Kasakoff , was on brief for appellants. Plaintiffs Julio Diaz, Ruben Diaz, Jeffrey Duenes, Guillermo Plaza, Amilcar Rodriguez, and Andre Rosado brought civil rights and common law claims for damages and equitable relief against the City of Fitchburg, Massachusetts, and several officers of the Fitchburg Police Department.
Plaintiffs appeal from the district court's sua sponte award of summary judgment to defendants.
Because this is an appeal from a grant of summary judgment to defendants, we recite the facts in the light most favorable to plaintiffs. See Fitchburg, Mass., Code art. The SRT is a special unit of the police department comprised of officers trained to respond to high-risk situations. SRT officers dress in black uniforms and hooded masks which do not bear any identifying insignia. After observing the raid and as they were leaving the scene following the search, Captain Mark Louney and Sergeant John O'Leary noticed plaintiffs congregated outside a nearby residence.