Opinion ID: 783861
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Threat to Bystanders

Text: 17 Officer Edinburg also maintains that his use of deadly force did not violate the Fourth Amendment because, as Mr. Scott drove through the parking lot of the Marathon gas station, there were between twelve to fourteen patrons in the vicinity of the vehicle's path whose safety Officer Edinburg believed was at risk; these people were forced to run and duck out of the path of the vehicle. R.58 at ¶¶ 7-18. Although we have determined that a genuine issue of material fact exists as to the timing of Officer Edinburg's firing of the first shot, Mr. Scott's attempt to run over Officer Edinburg is relevant in considering the reasonableness of Officer Edinburg's perception that the bystanders were in danger. In Ellis, we explained [i]f Ellis had threatened the officer with a weapon and then run off with the weapon, a reasonable officer ... could believe that Ellis created a danger to the community. Ellis, 999 F.2d at 247. Officer Edinburg knew that Mr. Scott already had committed a forcible felony and had attempted to run him down in order to escape or at least had acted recklessly with respect to that possibility. 5 Moreover, Officer Edinburg knew that Mr. Scott was escaping at a high rate of speed through a parking lot with twelve to fourteen bystanders and demonstrating little concern for anyone's safety. These facts support Officer Edinburg's argument that the use of deadly force was permissible to protect third parties in danger. See Sherrod v. Berry, 856 F.2d 802, 805 (7th Cir.1988) (en banc) (` [W]hen an officer believes that a suspect's actions [place] him, his partner, or those in the immediate vicinity in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury, the officer can reasonably exercise the use of deadly force. ' (emphasis in original)); see also Muhammed, 316 F.3d at 683 (quoting Sherrod ); Ford v. Childers, 855 F.2d 1271, 1275 (7th Cir.1988) (en banc) (finding no Fourth Amendment violation when officer fired at a suspect because he reasonably believed that the suspect had committed a felony involving the threat of deadly force, was armed with a deadly weapon, and was likely to pose a danger of serious harm to others if not immediately apprehended); Freland, 954 F.2d at 347 (affirming summary judgment even though officer was not in immediate personal danger when he fired his weapon because he could reasonably believe that the suspect posed a serious and immediate danger to the public and fellow officers). 18 The plaintiffs contend that the district court's grant of summary judgment was inappropriate because there exists a genuine issue of material fact regarding whether there was a threat to any bystanders. They rely on the identically worded affidavits of eyewitnesses Moses Dean, Jr. and Gregory Woolridge for the proposition that no one was actually in the direct path of Mr. Scott as he drove through the parking lot and that no bystander was forced to flee the car. The affidavits state: While the vehicle proceeded through the Marathon gas station parking lot, at no time were there any people in the direct path of the vehicle's travel. R.63, Ex.5 at ¶ 7; R.63, Ex.6 at ¶ 7. They also state, While the vehicle proceeded through the Marathon gas station parking lot, no people ran or were forced to flee from the vehicle's path to avoid being struck by the car. R.63, Ex.5 at ¶ 9; R.63, Ex.6 at ¶ 9. Finally, the plaintiffs invite us to consider statements in the affidavits from Dean and Woolridge that assert, While the vehicle proceeded through the Marathon gas station parking lot, at no time were there any people who were in danger of being struck by the vehicle. R.63, Ex.5 at ¶ 8; R.63, Ex.6 at ¶ 8. 6 19 The affidavits clearly create a disputed fact as to whether people were in the direct path of the car and whether they were forced to run and duck out of its way. Nevertheless, this conflict does not preclude summary judgment because the threatened individuals need not have been placed in the direct path of the threat. Deadly force may be exercised if the suspect's actions place the officer, his partner, or those in the immediate vicinity in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury. Muhammed, 316 F.3d at 683 (citing Sherrod, 856 F.2d at 805) (emphasis added). Moreover, as we have noted, at the time Officer Edinburg fired the fatal shots, there were between twelve and fourteen patrons in the gas station parking lot, Mr. Scott had committed a forcible felony by stealing Officer Edinburg's car, and Mr. Scott had placed Officer Edinburg in danger. The affidavits do not dispute these facts; therefore, they do not reject the basis for our conclusion that it was objectively reasonable for Officer Edinburg to perceive that the bystanders in the Marathon gas station parking lot were at risk of injury from Mr. Scott. 20 Additionally, the plaintiffs argue that the report of their expert, James Marsh, creates a genuine issue of material fact. The report concludes that Officer Edinburg's actions were based on faulty perception, poor judgment, were untimely, were without verbal warning, were excessive, and were unjustified. R.63, Ex.7 at 11. However, Marsh's report was introduced into the record without any supporting affidavit verifying its authenticity and is therefore inadmissible and cannot be considered for purposes of summary judgment. See Haywood v. Lucent Techs., Inc., 323 F.3d 524, 533 (7th Cir.2003) (stating that evidence relied upon to defeat a motion for summary judgment must be evidence of a type admissible at trial); Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e); Fed.R.Evid. 901(a). 7 21 Moreover, even if the report were admissible, it would not create a genuine issue of material fact. The report's analysis of Officer Edinburg's use of deadly force concludes that he should have used the least amount of force possible under the circumstances if there were lesser alternatives available to secure the same result. See R.63, Ex.7 at 8. We have rejected that position and stated, [w]e do not believe that the Fourth Amendment requires the use of the least or even a less deadly alternative so long as the use of deadly force is reasonable under Tennessee v. Garner and Graham v. Connor. ... Plakas v. Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143, 1149 (7th Cir.1994); see also Pena v. Leombruni, 200 F.3d 1031, 1033 (7th Cir.1999) (commenting that, although the application of measures to render a person harmless without killing or wounding him may be desirable, in a case in which the individual presented a serious threat of bodily harm, failure to adopt lesser measures would be no more than negligence, which is not actionable under § 1983); Forrett v. Richardson, 112 F.3d 416, 420 (9th Cir.1997), overruled on other grounds by Chroma Lighting v. GTE Prods. Corp., 127 F.3d 1136 (9th Cir.1997) (citing Plakas for the proposition that the Fourth Amendment does not require exhaustion of every alternative before using justifiable deadly force); 3 Wayne R. LaFave, Search & Seizure § 5.1, n. 161.2 (2003) (citing Plakas for the proposition that the Fourth Amendment does not require police to exhaust every alternative before using deadly force). 22 Finally, Mr. Scott argues that the testimony of William Cranston, one of Officer Edinburg's instructors, precludes summary judgment. Cranston testified that shooting into a moving vehicle and the use of deadly force against a non-dangerous fleeing felon is a violation of police procedures. See R.65 at ¶¶ 4-6. However, 42 U.S.C. § 1983 protects plaintiffs from constitutional violations, not violations of state laws or, in this case, departmental regulations and police practices. See Pasiewicz v. Lake County Forest Preserve Dist., 270 F.3d 520, 526 (7th Cir.2001); Soller v. Moore, 84 F.3d 964, 969 (7th Cir.1996) (rejecting evidence of police department policies as irrelevant in the Fourth Amendment reasonableness analysis); Ford, 855 F.2d at 1272-73 (upholding a district court's denial of a new trial after granting a directed verdict for defendant police officer even though plaintiffs introduced evidence of violations of police practices and police manual policies); Freland, 954 F.2d at 348 (adopting the approach of Ford v. Childers, limiting inquiry to whether the defendant violated Garner, not local police rules and practices). 23 The only issue before us is whether Officer Edinburg's use of force to effect an arrest was a reasonable seizure consistent with the Fourth Amendment. We emphasize that we are not called upon to determine whether Officer Edinburg's conduct was either good police practice or a violation of Illinois law. See Bell, 321 F.3d at 641 (To say that police officers have acted within the bounds that the Constitution sets is not necessarily to say that they have acted wisely.). Our inquiry is simply whether the record contains sufficient evidence on summary judgment to determine whether Officer Edinburg's conduct was reasonable under the Fourth Amendment. We conclude that it does.