Opinion ID: 1224431
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Officers Alvis and Keesor's Shooting of Sullivan

Text: The problem with the district court's analysis of the unreasonable force issue in regards to Sullivan's shooting is that the court focused solely on the provoking a confrontation aspect without any consideration as to whether the undisputed facts/evidence show that the officers' firing of their weapons was objectively reasonable at the point in time of the shooting. As discussed below, the district court's conclusions as to the provoking a confrontation issue are incorrect. Hence, this portion of the case should be reversed and remanded for the district court to decide whether the undisputed facts establish that Officers Alvis and Keesor's firing of their weapons was objectively reasonable. On the issue of the shooting, all of the previously discussed facts/evidence would come into play. Furthermore, the officers continually made requests throughout the incident for Sullivan to show both his hands, but he never did so. Additionally, he made statements which: 1) indicated his intent not to be taken into custody; 2) were of a threatening nature in regards to the officers' safety; and 3) led the officers to believe that he was contemplating suicide by cop. [12] In addition, once the officers encountered Sullivan in the attic, they did not act precipitously. They did not rush and attempt to subdue him. As the time elapsed, they considered options such as using less than lethal weapons and trying to force a larger hole through the bathroom ceiling/attic flooring to gain access to Sullivan's person. Also, they had made a request for a canine unit and were waiting for it to arrive. Finally, and most importantly, one must consider what was happening just before the officers' use of the force. [13] Here, there was testimony that immediately preceding the shooting, there were: 1) Sullivan's sudden movement of his right hand behind his back, 2) Sullivan's sudden lifting of his right arm, 3) Sullivan's raising something in one or both of his hands, 4) the sound of a pop that, to certain of the officers, was like a gunshot, and 5) a muzzle flash as if from a gun. Officer Alvis stated that she believed that Sullivan was shooting a gun at her so she returned fire. Officer Keesor testified that he thought that Sullivan had shot Alvis after he heard the pop and she fell from his peripheral view. He then opened fire. Although it is not disputed that Sullivan had no firearm to shoot, the question not addressed by the district court is whether Alvis and Keesor had objectively reasonable beliefs that Sullivan had a gun and was using it at the time they fired their weapons. [14] III. PROVOKING A CONFRONTATION