Opinion ID: 8414540
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment Claims

Text: Gill claims that the detectives coerced his confession in violation of his right against self-incrimination under the Fifth Amendment, as well as his substantive due process rights under the Fourteenth Amendment. He also claims that the detectives are liable for conspiracy and failure to intervene based on these violations. Defendants argue that they are entitled to qualified immunity on these claims. “The doctrine of qualified immunity shields officials from civil liability so long as their conduct ‘does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known.’ ” Mullenix v. Luna, — U.S. -, 136 S.Ct. 305, 308, 193 L.Ed.2d 255 (2015) (quoting Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223, 231, 129 S.Ct. 808, 172 L.Ed.2d 565 (2009)). To determine whether an official is entitled to qualified immunity, we must consider two questions: “(1) whether the facts, taken in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, make out a violation of a constitutional right, and (2) whether that constitutional right was clearly established at the time of the alleged violation.” Allin v. City of Springfield, 845 F.3d 858, 862 (7th Cir. 2016) (citation omitted). We have the discretion to choose which of these inquiries to address first. Pearson, 555 U.S. at 236, 129 S.Ct. 808. Because the answer is disposi-tive, we address only vyhether the right at issue was clearly established. “A clearly established right is one that is sufficiently clear that every reasonable official would understand that what he is doing violates that right.” Mullenix, 136 S.Ct. at 308 (citation and quotation marks omitted). The Supreme Court has continually reiterated that “clearly established law should not be defined at a high level of generality.” White v. Pauly, — U.S. -, 137 S.Ct. 548, 552, 196 L.Ed.2d 463 (2017) (citation and quotation marks omitted). While a case directly on point is not required, “the clearly established law must be ‘particularized’ to the facts of the case.” Id. at 551 (citation omitted). In other words, “existing precedent must have placed the statutory or constitutional question beyond debate.” Mullenix, 136 S.Ct. at 308 (citation omitted). Gill argues that the detectives violated his Fifth Amendment right when the “unconstitutionally coerced statements” were used against him in his criminal case, specifically in his preliminary hearing. He then claims that the detectives also violated his Fourteenth Amendment substantive due process right “to be free from coercive interrogation tactics.” Both claims depend upon the coercive nature of the interrogation. Gill argues, therefore, that his right to be free from coercive interrogation was well established, such that the unconstitutionality of Defendants actions was settled. To support that argument, Gill relies primarily on two principles from our case law. First, he points to the proposition that individuals with a diminished mental capacity can be particularly susceptible to coercive interrogation tactics. See, e.g., Smith v. Duckworth, 910 F.2d 1492, 1497 (7th Cir. 1990) (citing Andersen v. Thieret, 903 F.2d 526, 530 n. 1 (7th Cir. 1990)). Second, he cites cases recognizing that interrogation tactics that “shock the conscience” may give rise to substantive due process claims. See, e.g., Fox v. Hayes, 600 F.3d 819, 841 (7th Cir. 2010) (citing Rochin v. California, 342 U.S. 165, 172, 72 S.Ct. 205, 96 L.Ed. 183 (1952); see also Wallace v. City of Chicago, 440 F.3d 421, 429 (7th Cir. 2006)). He argues that, together, these principles have clearly established his right to be free from coercive interrogation. This characterization of the right at issue, however, is precisely the type of “high level of generality” the Supreme Court has rejected in the qualified immunity context. See White, 137 S.Ct. at 552. Whether interrogation tactics are unconstitutionally coercive is an inquiry that depends on the specific facts and circumstances present .in a particular case. Indeed, our cases have highlighted that “[t]here is no clear-cut analysis to determine what constitutes ‘conscience-shocking’ conduct ....” Fox, 600 F.3d at 841; see also Cairel v. Alderden, 821 F.3d 823, 833 (7th Cir. 2016) (“Determining what constitutes such behavior can bé difficult....”). This is true even where the officers have knowledge of a witness’s cognitive impairment. Cairel, 821 F.3d at 833-34. The right “to be free from coercive interrogation” is highly generalized. Therefore, it cannot be the basis for defeating a qualified immunity defense, unless there is closely analogous precedent that is “particularized” to the facts of the instant case. See White, 137 S.Ct. at 552. “When looking at closely analogous cases to determine if a right was clearly established at the time of violation, we look first to controlling precedent on the issue from the Supreme Court and to precedent from this Circuit.” Estate of Escobedo v. Bender, 600 F.3d 770, 781 (7th Cir. 2010). Gill has not cited, and we have not identified, any precedent from the Supreme Court or this Circuit that puts the unconstitutionality of the officers’ conduct here “beyond debate.” See Mullenix, 136 S.Ct. at 308. When no such precedent exists, we look outside our Circuit “to determine whether there was such a clear trend in the case law that we can say with fair assurance that the recognition of the right by a controlling precedent was merely a question of time.” Escobedo, 600 F.3d at 781 (citation and quotation marks omitted). Gill relies exclusively on two cases from the Eighth Circuit that he argues clearly establish the contours of the right violated here. See Livers v. Schenck, 700 F.3d 340 (8th Cir. 2012); Wilson v. Lawrence Cty., 260 F.3d 946 (8th Cir. 2001). In both cases, the court denied officers summary judgment after determining that there were questions of fact as to whether the interrogation methods in question violated the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment rights of a mentally disabled suspect. Livers, 700 F.3d at 354; Wilson, 260 F.3d at 954. In our view, however, these two cases from another circuit are insufficient to establish a “clear trend” indicating that recognition of this right as clearly established in this Circuit is “merely a question of time.” Escobedo, 600 F.3d at 781 (citation omitted). This is particularly true in light of our recent holding in Cairel, where we rejected a closely similar substantive due process claim based on the interrogation of a suspect with a cognitive disability. Cairel, 821 F.3d at 833-34. There, the officers interrogated the suspect without a lawyer present, despite the fact that they were “aware of [the suspect’s] disability and knew that he might not have been fully able to understand what was going on.” Id. In sum, Gill has failed to demonstrate that his right to be free from the interrogation tactics used here is clearly established. There is no precedent that places the constitutionality of the detectives’ actions “beyond debate.” See Mullenix, 136 S.Ct. at 308. For that reason, Defendants are entitled to qualified immunity on Gill’s Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment claims'. 1 Gill’s corresponding claim against the detectives for failure to intervene must also fail. To succeed on this claim, Gill must demonstrate that the Defendants (1) knew that a constitutional violation was committed; and (2) had a realistic opportunity to prevent it. See Yang v. Hardin, 37 F.3d 282, 285 (7th Cir. 1994). As we have demonstrated, Gill’s right to be free from these interrogation tactics was not clearly established. It follows then, that the detectives would not have known a constitutional violation was committed, and therefore, cannot be liable for failure to intervene. Similarly, because the Defendants are entitled to qualified immunity on the underlying claims, they are entitled to judgment on the corresponding conspiracy claims. See House v. Belford, 956 F.2d 711, 720 (7th Cir. 1992) (noting that “[a] person may not be prosecuted for conspiring to commit’ an act that he may perform with impunity”).