Opinion ID: 71388
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Deputy Watson

Text: 9 The Rooneys brought this action under section 1983 claiming that both Deputy Watson and Volusia County violated their constitutional rights to life, liberty, property, procedural due process and travel under the United States Constitution. In order for the Rooneys to state a cause of action against Watson in his official capacity, we must determine (1) whether Watson's conduct alleged to have caused their harm occurred while he was acting under color of state law, and (2) whether his alleged conduct deprived the Rooneys of rights, privileges, or immunities guaranteed under the Constitution or laws of the United States. Parratt v. Taylor, 451 U.S. 527, 535, 101 S.Ct. 1908, 1912-13, 68 L.Ed.2d 420 (1981), overruled on other grounds by, Daniels v. Williams, 474 U.S. 327, 106 S.Ct. 662, 88 L.Ed.2d 662 (1986); see also Burch v. Apalachee Community Mental Health Servs., Inc., 840 F.2d 797, 800 (11th Cir.1988), aff'd sub nom., Zinermon v. Burch, 494 U.S. 113, 110 S.Ct. 975, 108 L.Ed.2d 100 (1990). 10 Our decision in Cannon v. Taylor, 782 F.2d 947 (11th Cir.1986), directs our analysis in this case. In Cannon, a police officer responding to a disturbance call at a local pool hall in Columbus, Georgia, struck another vehicle, killing the driver of that vehicle. When responding to the call, the officer had neither his flashing lights nor siren activated even though he was traveling sixteen miles over the speed limit. Under Georgia law, at the time of the accident, police officers responding to emergency calls were allowed to exceed posted speed limits as long as they used their vehicles' flashing lights and siren. The decedent's family filed suit under section 1983 claiming that the police officer and the city of Columbus deprived the decedent of her life without due process of the law through reckless and excessive speeding without the use of lights and sirens. In that decision, this court held that a person injured in an automobile accident caused by the negligent, or even grossly negligent, operation of a motor vehicle by a policeman acting in the line of duty has no section l983 cause of action for violation of a federal right. Cannon, 782 F.2d at 950. In reaching that conclusion, this court noted that it could not find any cases supporting the proposition that a police officer's negligence in operating his vehicle deprives an injured person of due process of law and that automobile negligence actions are grist for the state law mill. But they do not rise to the level of a constitutional deprivation. Cannon, 782 F.2d at 949-50. 11 Under our reasoning in Cannon, Deputy Watson's single accident, whether we characterize it as negligence or even gross negligence causing the Rooneys' harm, does not amount to a constitutional deprivation. Although Watson was not responding to an emergency call, we believe Cannon 's holding dictates the result we reach. In this case, Watson was on duty and on patrol at the time of the accident. Under the reasoning of Cannon, we do not believe that any alleged negligence on Deputy Watson's part amounts to a constitutional deprivation simply because he was speeding in the absence of an emergency response or police pursuit. Perhaps his driving at a high rate of speed in a non-emergency or non-pursuit situation reveals gross negligence rather than negligence, but it does not transform a state tort claim into a constitutional deprivation under the circumstances of this case. Therefore, in the absence of a constitutional deprivation, the Rooneys cannot sustain a cause of action against Watson under section l983. 1