Opinion ID: 775072
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The City's Monell Liability

Text: 30 After finding that Dubner could not prove the identity of the arresting officers, the trial court dismissed her Monell claim against the City and County of San Francisco because there was no underlying constitutional violation. While the court's decision was based on a correct interpretation of the prerequisites for municipal liability, see City of Los Angeles v. Heller, 475 U.S. 796, 799 (1986), its conclusion must be reevaluated in light of our holding that there was no probable cause for the arrest. Dubner alleges that the City had a policy of using incomplete citizen's arrest forms to affect unlawful arrests. She introduced evidence at trial that it was common practice in the San Francisco Police Department to have complainants sign the forms and then fill in the names of arrestees and their offenses later. And there was testimony suggesting that officers were instructed to use citizen's arrest forms in this way. Therefore, we remand for a determination on the City and County's liability.