Opinion ID: 2971766
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: False Imprisonment/False Arrest

Text: The Ohio Supreme Court has noted that “false arrest and false imprisonment as causes of action are indistinguishable.” Rogers v. Barbera, 164 N.E.2d 162, 164 (Ohio 1960) (quoting 22 Am. Jur. False Imprisonment § 2-3). The court stated that “the essence of the tort consists in depriving the plaintiff of his liberty without lawful justification; and the good intention of the defendant does not excuse, nor does his evil intention create, the tort.” Id. To prevail on a claim for false arrest/imprisonment, the plaintiff must demonstrate: “(1) the intentional detention of the person and (2) the unlawfulness of the detention.” Hodges v. Meijer, Inc., 717 N.E.2d 806, 809 (Ohio Ct. App. 1998). Thus, an arrest based on probable cause is a lawful detention and, thereby, serves to defeat a false arrest/imprisonment claim. Having concluded that Telegdy and Saxer had probable cause to arrest Radvansky, the district court granted summary judgment to Appellees on these claims. Although we have reversed that determination by concluding that a reasonable jury could find that they lacked probable cause to arrest Radvansky, we hold that Telegdy and Saxer are still entitled to summary judgment on these claims in light of the statutory grant of immunity under Ohio’s Political Subdivision Tort Liability Act. Therefore, we affirm the decision of the district court with regards to the grant of summary judgment on the false arrest/false imprisonment claim. Ohio provides statutory immunity for its political subdivisions and their employees in civil actions seeking “to recover damages for injury, death or loss to person or property allegedly caused by any act or omission in connection with a governmental or proprietary function” in certain circumstances. Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 2744.03(A). Specifically, an employee is immune from liability unless his actions were “manifestly outside the scope of [his] employment,” or “were with malicious purpose,15 in bad faith,16 or in a wanton17 or reckless manner.”18 Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 2744.03(A)(6)(a)&(b). The Ohio courts have found that even where a police officer’s actions 15 Ohio courts have defined malice as “the willful and intentional design to do injury or the intention or desire to harm another, usually seriously, through conduct which is unlawful or unjustified.” Boyd v. Village of Lexington, No. 01-CA-64, 2002 WL 416016, at  (Ohio Ct. App. Mar. 14, 2002). 16 Bad faith is defined as involving “a dishonest purpose, conscious wrongdoing, the breach of a known duty through some ulterior motive or ill will, as in the nature of fraud, or an actual intent to mislead or deceive another.” Id. 17 Wanton is defined as “the failure to exercise any care whatsoever.” Id. 18 Finally, reckless is defined as the “intentional deviation from a clear duty or from a definite rule of conduct.” Id. No. 03-3798 Radvansky v. City of Olmsted Falls, et al. Page 18 violate the arrestee’s constitutional rights, the officer is not necessarily subject to tort liability. Where the officer’s conduct is “not as thorough as it could have been,” his conduct is merely negligent, which is insufficient “to remove the cloak of immunity.” Boyd v. Village of Lexington, No. 01-CA-64, 2002 WL 416016, at  (Ohio Ct. App. Mar. 14, 2002) Under this statutory framework, Telegdy and Saxer are entitled to immunity against Radvansky’s false arrest/imprisonment claims. Radvansky has not produced any evidence to support a finding that Telegdy and Saxer acted with the intent to harm him or with any ulterior motive. There was neither a complete lack of care nor an intentional deviation from a definite rule of conduct. Telegdy and Saxer did not investigate as thoroughly as they should have. Such negligence is insufficient to remove the cloak of immunity under state law. Therefore, 19 the district court’s grant of summary judgment on the false arrest/imprisonment count is affirmed.