Opinion ID: 780522
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Whether Hamlin Arrested Crockett and Greene Without Probable Cause

Text: 35 We must evaluate whether Hamlin properly concluded that there was probable cause to arrest Crockett and Greene for complicity to commit rape at the time the arrest warrants were drafted. At this time, Hamlin had conducted several hours of investigation in which he personally interviewed the alleged victim, Doe, and an eyewitness, Roe. Hamlin had reviewed their versions of the events that had taken place earlier that evening numerous times. Hamlin also relied on reports from Cumberland officials. In addition, Hamlin consulted with the County Attorney, Kersey, who had himself interviewed Doe and Roe and who eventually drafted the affidavit that Hamlin signed. Hamlin had not interviewed Crockett or Greene; nor had Hamlin interviewed the others present in Bostic's dorm room at the time of the alleged rape. Hamlin also did not have the benefit of the written statements of Doe, Roe, Crockett or Greene, which were drafted later that night. 36 Hamlin's reliance on the statements of the victim and an eyewitness alone may be sufficient to establish probable cause. See Ahlers, 188 F.3d at 370 (An eyewitness identification will constitute sufficient probable cause `unless, at the time of the arrest, there is an apparent reason for the officer to believe that the eyewitness `was lying ... [in]accurate ... or ... mistaken.''). Hamlin relied on both Roe's and Doe's description of the events. Notably, in interviewing Roe about Doe's alleged rape, Hamlin learned that Crockett and Greene had prevented Roe from approaching Doe even though Roe struggled to free herself and told them that Doe was no longer laughing. Hamlin also relied on Doe's repeated statement to him: I can't believe DuShon [Greene] and Torre [Crockett]. They were my friends; they were my friends. In addition to the statements of Doe and Roe in making the determination that probable cause existed, Hamlin relied on the advice of County Attorney Kersey and Kersey's understanding of what Doe and Roe claimed happened. 37 Based on this information, Hamlin reasonably believed that Crockett and Greene aided, counseled, or attempted to aid Shannon and Bostic in planning or committing the rape and that plaintiffs possessed the specific intent to promote or facilitate the commission of the rape. Hamlin was not required to interview Crockett or Greene. Once probable cause is established, as it was here, an officer is under no duty to investigate further or to look for additional evidence which may exculpate the accused. Ahlers, 188 F.3d at 371. 38 Certainly Hamlin's conclusion that Crockett and Greene possessed the requisite mental state was not mandated by the information available to him. It is possible to infer that in restraining Roe, Crockett and Greene did not intend to aid Shannon and Bostic — especially with the benefit of hindsight. For example, Hamlin knew that the alleged rape was not obvious to everyone in the room because Roe did not learn of the alleged rape until she and Doe had left the dorm room. However, we must address only whether Hamlin's conclusion was permissible under the circumstances. We find that it was. From the information available to Hamlin, it is certainly possible to infer that Crockett and Greene intended to aid the alleged rape. They had opportunities to plan with Shannon and Bostic to assist the alleged rape. They also could have known more about Shannon and Bostic's intentions than Roe did. In sum, the facts available to Hamlin were sufficient to give rise to the conclusion that there was a reasonable probability that the plaintiffs had committed the offense of complicity to commit rape. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the plaintiffs, no reasonable jury could find that Hamlin had lacked probable cause to arrest Crockett and Greene. Because there was probable cause for their arrest, Crockett and Greene cannot satisfy the first prong of the qualified immunity analysis: that Hamlin violated their constitutional right not to be arrested without probable cause. 39 B. Whether a Reasonable Officer Would Believe that Officer Hamlin Had Violated Crockett and Greene's Clearly Established Constitutional Rights 40 Even assuming that probable cause did not exist for the arrests of Crockett and Greene, Hamlin would be entitled to qualified immunity unless a reasonable officer would know that Hamlin's alleged conduct violated a clearly established federal right. Anderson, 483 U.S. at 640, 107 S.Ct. 3034; Noble v. Schmitt, 87 F.3d 157, 161 (6th Cir.1996). Where clearly established law is violated, qualified immunity is inappropriate because a reasonably competent public official should know the law governing his conduct. Harlow, 457 U.S. at 818-19, 102 S.Ct. 2727. 41 Whether the right at issue was clearly established will turn on the particularized circumstances of the case. Anderson, 483 U.S. at 640, 107 S.Ct. 3034; Centanni v. Eight Unknown Officers, 15 F.3d 587, 589-90, 592 (6th Cir.1994). The Supreme Court has limited the application of the clearly established law requirement, by explaining that: 42 The contours of the right must be sufficiently clear that a reasonable official would understand that what he is doing violates that right. This is not to say that an official action is protected by qualified immunity unless the very action in question has previously been held unlawful ... but it is to say that in the light of pre-existing law the unlawfulness must be apparent. 43 Anderson, 483 U.S. at 640, 107 S.Ct. 3034. Thus, our inquiry must focus on whether a reasonable officer would believe, as Hamlin did, that, based upon the statements of Doe and Roe and the advice of Kersey, probable cause to arrest Crockett and Greene for complicity to commit rape existed. We find that a reasonable officer would possess such a belief. At the broadest level, [i]t is clearly established that an arrest without probable cause violates the Fourth Amendment. Donovan, 105 F.3d at 297-98. Further particularizing the contours of the Fourth Amendment right as we are required to do by Anderson, it is clearly established that reliance on the account of an eyewitness is sufficient to established probable cause. Ahlers, 188 F.3d at 370. Hamlin's reliance on the advice of an attorney further supports the reasonableness of Hamlin's belief that probable cause existed. Ultimately, the arrest was sanctioned by a judge who agreed that probable cause existed and issued an arrest warrant based on Hamlin and Kersey's affidavit. 44 The warrant application drafted by Kersey and signed by Hamlin, although minimal, was not barren of indicia of probable cause. Only where the warrant application is so lacking in indicia of probable cause as to render official belief in its existence unreasonable ... will the shield of qualified immunity be lost. Malley v. Briggs, 475 U.S. 335, 344-45, 106 S.Ct. 1092, 89 L.Ed.2d 271 (1986). There is no evidence that Hamlin or Kersey knowingly made material misstatements in the arrest warrant application. See Hill v. McIntyre, 884 F.2d 271, 275 (6th Cir.1989) (An action under § 1983 does lie against an officer who obtains an invalid search warrant by making, in his affidavit, material false statements either knowingly or in reckless disregard for the truth.); Hutsell v. Sayre, 5 F.3d 996, 1003 (6th Cir.1993); see also Ahlers, 188 F.3d at 371 (noting that police officers may not make hasty, unsubstantiated arrests with impunity). Moreover, the fact that Crockett and Greene were never indicted for the crime of arrest does not invalidate Hamlin's finding that probable cause to arrest them existed. See Stone v. Powell, 428 U.S. 465, 540-41, 96 S.Ct. 3037, 49 L.Ed.2d 1067 (citing Pierson, 386 U.S. at 555, 87 S.Ct. 1213; Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 94 S.Ct. 1683, 40 L.Ed.2d 90 (1974)). 45 Hamlin conducted a sufficient investigation by personally interviewing Doe and Roe and relying on the advice of Kersey. From this investigation Hamlin was able to properly determine that probable cause to arrest Crockett and Greene existed. Later, in ordering the arrest, Hamlin relied upon the judicially-approved warrant. Accordingly, Hamlin is entitled to qualified immunity for his conduct in arresting Crockett and Greene.