Source: https://www.legalcrystal.com/case/104786/gomez-vs-toledo
Timestamp: 2017-11-18 06:27:41
Document Index: 730551180

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 1983', '§ 1983', '§ 1343', '§ 1983', '§ 1983', '§ 1983', '§ 1983', '§ 1271', '§ 1270']

Gomez Vs Toledo - Citation 104786 - Court Judgment | LegalCrystal
Gomez Vs. Toledo - Court Judgment
LegalCrystal Citation legalcrystal.com/104786
Case Number 446 U.S. 635
Respondent Toledo
.....grounds for the belief formed at the time and in light of all the circumstances, coupled with good faith belief, that affords a basis for qualified immunity of executive officers for acts performed in the course of official conduct." scheuer v. rhodes, supra at 416 u. s. 247 -248. the applicable test focuses not only on whether the official has an objectively reasonable basis for that belief, but also on whether "[t]he official himself [is] acting sincerely, and with a belief that he is doing right," wood v. strickland, supra at 420 u. s. 321 . there may be no way for a plaintiff to know in advance whether the official has such a belief or, indeed, whether he will even claim that he does. the existence of a subjective belief will frequently turn on factors.....
Gomez v. Toledo - 446 U.S. 635 (1980)
U.S. Supreme Court Gomez v. Toledo, 446 U.S. 635 (1980)
Held: In an action brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against a public official whose position might entitle him to qualified immunity, the plaintiff is not required to allege that the defendant acted in bad faith in order to state a claim for relief, but the burden is on the defendant to plead good faith as an affirmative defense. By § 1983's plain terms, the plaintiff is required to make only two allegations in order to state a cause of action under the statute: (1) that some person deprived him of a federal right, and (2) that such person acted under color of state or territorial law. This allocation of the burden of pleading is supported by the nature of the qualified immunity defense, since whether such immunity has been established depends on facts peculiarly within the defendant's knowledge and control, the applicable test focusing not only on whether he has an objectively reasonable basis for his belief that his conduct was lawful, but also on whether he has a subjective belief. Pp. 446 U. S. 638 -641.
MARSHALL, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Court. RHENNQUIST, J., filed a concurring statement, post, p. 446 U. S. 642 .
Petitioner Carlos Rivera Gomez brought this action against respondent, the Superintendent of the Police of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, contending that respondent had violated his right to procedural due process by discharging him from employment with the Police Department's Bureau of Criminal Investigation. [ Footnote 1 ] Basing jurisdiction on 28 U.S.C. § 1343(3), [ Footnote 2 ] petitioner alleged the following facts in his complaint. [ Footnote 3 ] Petitioner had been employed as an agent with the Puerto Rican police since 1968. In April, 1975, he submitted a sworn statement to his supervisor in which he asserted that two other agents had offered false evidence for use in a criminal case under their investigation. As a result of this statement, petitioner was immediately transferred from the Criminal Investigation Corps for the Southern Area to Police Headquarters in San Juan, and a few weeks later to the Police Academy in Gurabo, where he was given no investigative authority. In the meantime respondent ordered an investigation of petitioner's claims, and the Legal Division of
the complaint. The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed. 602 F.2d 1018 (1979). [ Footnote 4 ]
We granted certiorari to resolve a conflict anong the Courts of Appeals. [ Footnote 5 ] 444 U.S. 1031 (1980). We now reverse.
Section 1983 provides a cause of action for "the deprivation of ay rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws" by any person acting "under color of a.ny statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State or Territory." 42 U.S.C. § 1983. [ Footnote 6 ] This statute, enacted to aid in " the preservation of human liberty and human rights,'" Owen v. City of Independence, 445 U. S. 622 , 445 U. S. 636 (1980), quoting Cong.Globe, 42d Cong., 1st Sess., App. 68
(1871) (Rep. Shellabarger), reflects a congressional judgment that a "damages remedy against the offending party is a vital component of any scheme for vindicating cherished constitutional guarantees," 445 U.S. at 445 U. S. 651 . As remedial legislation, § 1983 is to be construed generously to further its primary purpose. See 445 U.S. at 445 U. S. 636 .
In certain limited circumstances, we have held that public officers are entitled to a qualified immunity from damages liability under § 1983. This conclusion has been based on an unwillingness to infer from legislative silence a congressional intention to abrogate immunities that were both "well established at common law" and "compatible with the purposes of the Civil Rights Act." 445 U.S. at 445 U. S. 638 . Findings of immunity have thus been
Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U. S. 409 , 424 U. S. 421 (1976). In Pierson v. Ray, 386 U. S. 547 , 386 U. S. 555 (1967), for example, we concluded that a police officer would be
And in other contexts we have held, on the basis of "[c]ommon law tradition . . . and strong public policy reasons," Wood v. Strickland, 420 U. S. 308 , 420 U. S. 318 (1975), that certain categories of executive officers should be allowed qualified immunity from liability for acts done on the basis of an objectively reasonable belief that those acts were lawful. See Procunier v. Navarette, 434 U. S. 555 (1978) (prison officials); O'Connor v. Donaldson, 422 U. S. 563 (1975) (superintendent of state hospital); Wood v. Strickland, supra, (local school board members); Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U. S. 232 (1974) (state Governor and other executive officers). Cf. Owen v. City of Independence, supra, (no qualified immunity for municipalities).
however, suggests that, in an action brought against a public official whose position might entitle him to immunity if he acted in good faith, a plaintiff must allege bad faith in order to state a claim for relief. By the plain terms of § 1983, two -- and only two -- allegations are required in order to state a cause of action under that statute. First, the plaintiff must allege that some person has deprived him of a federal right. Second, he must allege that the person who has deprived him of that right acted under color of state or territorial law. See Monroe v. Pape, 365 U. S. 167 , 365 U. S. 171 (1961). Petitioner has made both of the required allegations. He alleged that his discharge by respondent violated his right to procedural due process, see Board of Regents v. Roth, 408 U. S. 564 (1972), and that respondent acted under color of Puerto Rican law. See Monroe v. Pape, supra, at 365 U. S. 172 -187. [ Footnote 7 ]
Moreover, this Court has never indicated that qualified immunity is relevant to the existence of the plaintiff's cause of action; instead, we have described it as a defense available to the official in question. See Procuner v. Navarette, supra at 434 U. S. 562 ; Pierson v. Ray, supra at 386 U. S. 556 , 386 U. S. 557 ; Butz v. Economou, 438 U. S. 478 , 438 U. S. 508 (1978). Since qualified immunity is a defense, the burden of pleading it rests with the defendant. See Fed.Rule Civ.Proc. 8(c) (defendant must plead any "matter constituting an avoidance or affirmative defense"); 5 C. Wright & A. Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure § 1271 (1969). It is for the official to claim that his conduct was justified by an objectively reasonable belief that it was lawful. We see no basis for imposing on the plaintiff an obligation to anticipate such a defense by stating in his complaint that the defendant acted in bad faith.
Scheuer v. Rhodes, supra at 416 U. S. 247 -248. The applicable test focuses not only on whether the official has an objectively reasonable basis for that belief, but also on whether "[t]he official himself [is] acting sincerely, and with a belief that he is doing right," Wood v. Strickland, supra at 420 U. S. 321 . There may be no way for a plaintiff to know in advance whether the official has such a belief or, indeed, whether he will even claim that he does. The existence of a subjective belief will frequently turn on factors which a plaintiff cannot reasonably be expected to know. For example, the official's belief may be based on state or local law, advice of counsel, administrative practice, or some other factor of which the official alone is aware. To impose the pleading burden on the plaintiff would ignore this elementary fact, and be contrary to the established practice in analogous areas of the law. [ Footnote 8 ]
ABA, Proceedings Institute at Washington and Symposium at New York City on the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 49 (1939). See also 5 C. Wright & A. Miller, Federal Practice and Procedure §§ 1270-1271 (1969). Cf. FTC v. A. E. Staley Mfg. Co., 324 U. S. 746 , 324 U. S. 759 (1945) (good faith defense under Robinson-Patman Act); Barcellona v. Tiffany English Pub., Inc., 597 F.2d 464, 468 (CA5 1979); Cohen v. Ayers, 596 F.2d 733, 739-740 (CA7 1979); United States v. Kroll, 547 F.2d 393 (CA7 1977).