Opinion ID: 1432936
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Unlawful Seizure: Arrest[1].Reckless Driving

Text: Despite Miller's admission that he ran a stop sign going approximately 30 miles per hour, the majority concludes that icy road conditions  which could certainly have caused Miller to inadvertently drive through the stop sign  created a genuine issue of fact as to whether probable cause existed for the arrest. Adherence to the proper probable cause inquiry leads me to disagree. In order for a wrongful arrest claim to succeed under § 1983, a plaintiff must prove that the police lacked probable cause. Fridley v. Horrighs, 291 F.3d 867, 872 (6th Cir.2002). Probable cause exists if the facts and circumstances known to the officer warrant a prudent man in believing that the offense has been committed. Logsdon v. Hains, 492 F.3d 334, 341 (6th Cir.2007) (quotation marks and citation omitted). Michigan law provides that [a] person who drives a vehicle upon a highway ... in willful or wanton disregard for the safety of persons or property is guilty of reckless driving, Mich. Comp. Laws § 257.626(1), and classifies reckless driving as an arrestable offense, § 764.15. Miller's driving through a stop sign at 30 miles per hour supplied probable cause for his arrest. See, e.g., United States v. Miller, 326 Fed.Appx. 513, 516 (11th Cir.2009) (police had probable cause to stop vehicle for reckless driving after observing plaintiff drive recklessly and ignore a stop sign); United States v. Jackson, 167 Fed. Appx. 812, 813 (D.C.Cir.2005) (police had probable cause to stop vehicle for reckless driving after observing plaintiff fail to stop at a stop sign, fail to signal when turning, and swerve to avoid oncoming traffic in an alley). The vehicle's speed is critical to this finding. If Miller skidded through the stop sign or traveled through the intersection at a greatly reduced speed, for example, the majority might justifiably find a genuine issue of material fact. But driving through an intersection at 30 miles per hour evinces wanton disregard for the safety of others. Indeed, rather than call into question the issue of probable cause, the icy road conditions favor the officer's judgment that Miller was driving too fast for the conditions.