Court Opinion

ID: 9880074
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-27 18:57:07.397937+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:48:06.197320
License: Public Domain

KELLY, Circuit Judge, concurring I agree that Hershell Wallace is entitled to qualified immunity. I write to note that St. Louis’s municipal liability is not before us on this appeal. The plaintiffs made three claims relating to Wallace’s Project 87 inspection. One of those claims sought to hold Wallace personally liable—this appeal disposes of that claim. The remaining two claims seek to hold the City of St. Louis liable for an unconstitutional policy under Monell v. Dep’t of Social Servs. of N.Y.C., 436 U.S. 658, 98 S.Ct. 2018, 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978). We express no opinion on the district court’s denial of summary judgment on these Monell claims. And, because we grant Wallace qualified immunity based on a lack of clearly-established law, our ruling is not determinative of whether his employer is liable for effectuating an unconstitutional policy. See Owen v. City of Independence, Mo., 445 U.S. 622, 657-58, 100 S.Ct. 1398, 63 L.Ed.2d 673 (1980). Thus, our opinion does not foreclose the plaintiffs from pursuing their Mo-nell claims based on Project 87 searches.