Court Opinion

ID: 9627999
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 09:03:04.925078+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:50:02.525847
License: Public Domain

NYGAARD, Circuit Judge,
Concurring.
I fully agree with the majority that we lack jurisdiction to review the District *415Court’s denial of qualified immunity on the false arrest claim. Further, I take no issue with the majority’s decision to remand this matter to the District Court for further clarification pursuant the supervisory rule we announced in Forbes v. Twp. of Lower Merion, 313 F.3d 144 (3d Cir.2002). I write separately, however, out of concern that the majority’s opinion does not appear to give the District Judge the full benefit of her analysis. The majority believes that the District Judge failed to understand that the defendants asserted a qualified immunity defense with respect to all claims. Indeed, Judge Shapiro specifically held that the police officer defendants “have asserted qualified immunity on the false arrest claim only.” If indeed the District Judge did not understand upon which claims the police officers sought qualified immunity, I empathize. In their memorandum in support of their motion for qualified immunity, the police officers acknowledge that Blaylock’s claims rest “on his contention that he was arrested without probable cause for someone else’s misdeeds.” Further, they characterize Blaylock’s claims this way: “what plaintiff does claim is that the defendants arrested the wrong person.” Nowhere in their principal discussion of the case do the police officers mention or characterize Blay-lock’s excessive force or malicious prosecution claims.
In reviewing what I believe to be inart-fully drafted motions and memoranda filed in the case, I am left with some question as to precisely what the officers are arguing. For example, as to Officer Walker, they argue that “in simple terms, plaintiff was arrested upon probable cause and his claims under Section 1983 and under state law for false arrest fail for that reason.” Clearly, the police officers argue for the imposition of qualified immunity on the false arrest claim. Just as clearly, they make no mention of the malicious prosecution claim. With respect to the excessive force claim against Officer Walker, the officers do not seem to assert qualified immunity at all, stating “plaintiff has no claim against Officer Walker for use of excessive force because no such claim ... was asserted in the second amended complaint.” This could be understood as asking for judgment in his favor based on a perceived waiver.
Next, the defendants discuss Officer Brian Reynolds. Here again, they maintain that “[pjlaintiff alleges excessive force in connection with his arrest, but can offer no evidence to support that claim.” They make only a passing reference to the excessive force claim, without identifying that claim or mentioning qualified immunity: “insofar as he was required to lie down and was handcuffed during the search, that level of force is lawful as a matter of law.”
Things are argued a bit differently with Officer Liciardello. Here, the defendants submit that “Plaintiff alleges excessive force by Officer Liciardello in connection with this arrest, but can offer no evidence to support that claim.” No mention is made of the false arrest claim or the malicious prosecution claim.
Two defendants remain: Officers Cujdik and Malkowski. As to Cujdik, the defendants make arguments that do not appear to touch on any of Blaylock’s claims. First, the officers argue that “none of Cu-jdik’s actions [in observing various drug transactions], implicate any rights of the plaintiff.” I view this as an attempt to argue that Cujdik has qualified immunity on the false arrest claim because the officer’s argument continues, “Plaintiff claims not to have been present for those transactions, and he certainly cannot claim that officer Cujdik harmed him in any way in reporting what he saw.” The remaining defendant is Officer Malkowski. Here, the officers argue that the absence of any alie-*416gations in the second amended complaint against Malkowski entitle him to summary judgment. It is unclear to me, however, whether they argue this entitlement is based on qualified immunity, or simply the absence of any allegations against Malkow-ski.
The majority’s opinion indicates that “although the officers focused most of their briefing on the false arrest claim, they also argued that they were entitled to qualified immunity on the excessive force claim and malicious prosecution claims.” After reviewing their motion for qualified immunity, I am not certain that the District Court erred by concluding that “defendants have asserted qualified immunity on the false arrest claim only.” However, because the motion and memoranda are far from clear, I do not object to remanding the cause to the District Court for it to clarify its reasons for denying qualified immunity as to claims for excessive force and malicious prosecution, if indeed it finds such claims to have been properly raised in the first place.