Opinion ID: 169434
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: federal prosecution and incarceration

Text: 60 Next, Mr. Novitsky contends the district court erred in granting summary judgment to the officers on his claim that they violated his Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights by causing the federal prosecution and his resulting incarceration. In his appellate brief, Mr. Novitsky provides only a cursory discussion of the legal basis for this claim. He does, however, cite two cases as applicable precedent: Pierce v. Gilchrist, 359 F.3d 1279 (10th Cir.2004), and Robinson v. Maruffi, 895 F.2d 649, 655-56 (10th Cir.1990). Based on this precedent, we view this claim as alleging malicious prosecution under § 1983 and address it as such. See Pierce, 359 F.3d at 1285-97 (discussing the elements of a malicious prosecution claim under § 1983); Robinson, 895 F.2d at 651, 655 (discussing civil rights claim alleging that the defendants knowingly permitted ... false testimony to be used for the sole purpose of having [the plaintiff] prosecuted, convicted, and punished for ... murder and observing that the essence of the claim was conspiracy for malicious prosecution); see also Heck v. Humphrey, 512 U.S. 477, 484, 114 S.Ct. 2364, 129 L.Ed.2d 383 (1994) (analyzing § 1983 plaintiff's claim for damages based on wrongful arrest and imprisonment under the common law elements of malicious prosecution). 61 In this circuit, when addressing § 1983 malicious prosecution claims, we use the common law elements of malicious prosecution as the starting point of our analysis; however, the ultimate question is whether plaintiff has proven the deprivation of a constitutional right. Taylor v. Meacham, 82 F.3d 1556, 1561 (10th Cir. 1996). We look to both the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments. See Pierce, 359 F.3d at 1285-86 (The initial seizure is governed by the Fourth Amendment, but at some point after arrest, and certainly by the time of trial, constitutional analysis shifts to the Due Process Clause.) (citations and footnote omitted). 62 The elements of the common law tort of malicious prosecution, as applicable in a § 1983 claim, are: (1) the defendant caused the plaintiff's continued confinement or prosecution; (2) the original action terminated in favor of the plaintiff; (3) there was no probable cause to support the original arrest, continued confinement, or prosecution; (4) the defendant acted with malice; and (5) the plaintiff sustained damages. Pierce, 359 F.3d at 1291-1297. Below, the district court determined that Mr. Novitsky failed to introduce sufficient evidence of the first element, that is, that the officers caused his federal prosecution and incarceration. 63 Mr. Novitsky strenuously challenges this conclusion on appeal. First, he argues that, viewed in the light most favorable to him, the officers caused him to be indicted and bound over for trial by inaccurately recounting the sequence of events leading to the discovery of the firearm in the Serialized Property Report. Second, he argues that, viewed in the light most favorable to him, the false statement in the report and both officers' affirmation of the report's accuracy when meeting with Agent Porter resulted in the district court denying his initial motion to suppress the firearm and, thus, his incarceration until we affirmed the district court's grant of his second motion to suppress. See id. at 1292 (This Court has previously held that officers who conceal and misrepresent material facts to the district attorney are not insulated from a § 1983 claim for malicious prosecution simply because the prosecutor, grand jury, trial court, and appellate court all act independently to facilitate erroneous convictions.). 64 Even assuming these arguments are correct, Mr. Novitsky cannot, in any event, establish the third (lack of probable cause) element of a common law malicious prosecution claim. Indeed, there is no question that probable cause supported Mr. Novitsky's prosecution and continued incarceration during his trial on the felon in possession of a firearm charge because Mr. Novitsky admitted he was a felon and possessed a handgun in the affidavit he furnished to the BATF. Cf. id, 359 F.3d at 1295 (concluding that falsification of inculpatory evidence or suppressing of exculpatory evidence that was necessary to the finding of probable cause would establish the lack of probable cause element). 65 Similarly, Mr. Novitsky has failed to introduce sufficient evidence that the misstatement in the report and the officers' failure to recognize that mistake were intentional, rather than out of negligence or inadvertence. Taylor, 82 F.3d at 1563. This is particularly true given Officer Wortham's candid testimony during Mr. Novitsky's criminal trial and the second motion to suppress hearing. Thus, Mr. Novitsky has failed to set forth sufficient evidence of the fourth (malice) element of a malicious prosecution claim. 3 Cf. Robinson, 895 F.2d at 655 (holding sufficient evidence of malice where the defendants purposely concealed and misrepresented material facts by manufacturing testimony for the state's key witnesses). 66 Accordingly, the officers are entitled to summary judgment on Mr. Novitsky's malicious prosecution claim.