Case law

Jamal Ward v. Charles Brotzke

Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Jun 12, 2026

To overcome qualified immunity, Ward must demonstrate “(1) the defendant[s] violated a constitutional right and (2) that right was clearly established” at the time of the incident. Thompson v. … So we conclude that Brotzke is also entitled to qualified immunity. B.

Dawn Hughey v. Anthony Easlick

3 F.4th 283 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Jun 28, 2021

The Qualified-Immunity Test A government official is not entitled to qualified immunity if the official’s conduct violated a constitutional right and that right was “clearly established” such that “it would be clear … Clearly Established The “clearly established” prong of the qualified-immunity test requires us to ask “whether the state of the law [at the time of the action giving rise to the claim] gave respondents fair warning

Gaspers v. Ohio Department of Youth Services

648 F.3d 400 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Aug 5, 2011

Having found that a constitutional violation has been adequately established, we must next determine whether the constitutional right at issue was clearly established at the time of the violation, Pearson v. … ’s “right of intimate association was clearly established by July 19, 1995.”

Steverson Davis v. Patrick Brady and Shawn Murphy

143 F.3d 1021 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Jun 29, 1998

STANDARD OF REVIEW A denial of summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds is reviewed de novo. Washington v. … The court held that the officers were entitled to qualified immunity because DeShaney did not recognize a passenger’s clearly established right not to be abandoned by the police after the arrest of the driver of the vehicle

Vaughn v. United States Small Business Administration

65 F.3d 1322 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Sep 21, 1995

Because we conclude that Whitmore did not violate any of Vaughn's clearly established rights, we REVERSE the district court's refusal to grant Whitmore qualified immunity. I. … Under Harlow, an exercise of such discretion only loses the protection of qualified immunity when a clearly established right has been violated.

Geoffrey M. Radvansky v. City of Olmsted Falls

395 F.3d 291 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Jan 14, 2005

did was objectively unreasonable in light of the clearly established constitutional rights.” … Qualified Immunity Having established that a reasonable jury could find that Telegdy and Sax-er violated Radvansky’s constitutional right, the next steps in the qualified immunity analysis are to determine whether that right

Smith v. Cupp

430 F.3d 766 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Dec 2, 2005

The district court denied Dunn qualified immunity. … of clearly established constitutional law."

Sarah v. Bradley

66 F. App'x 562 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · May 27, 2003

Sarah also argues that the defendants were not entitled to qualified immunity because his claims involve the alleged violation of clearly established constitutional rights. … However, the district court did not rely on qualified immunity as the primary basis for dismissing his claims.

Donald Bennett v. City of Eastpointe

410 F.3d 810 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Jun 8, 2005

conduct violated clearly established constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would have known.” … Aey, this Court wrote: Qualified immunity involves a three-step inquiry.

Michael Wood v. Chad Eubanks

25 F.4th 414 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Feb 8, 2022

Because there was no probable cause to arrest Wood for his conduct, and because Wood’s right to be free from arrest was clearly established, the officers are not entitled to qualified immunity. … The officers are not entitled to qualified immunity if the constitutional right they violated “was ‘clearly established’ at the time of the challenged conduct.”

Cristi Campbell v. April Riahi

109 F.4th 854 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Jul 29, 2024

Riahi counters that she is entitled to qualified immunity on the facts as we must construe them here. … Riahi is therefore entitled to qualified immunity as to the federal claim against her. B.

John Sinclair, Lawrence R. Plamondon and John W. Forrest v. Kenneth L. Schriber, James Sullivan and Charles Wagner

916 F.2d 1109 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Oct 23, 1990

The court held that because the law as to the need for a warrant in order to conduct domestic security wiretaps was not clearly established at the time the defendants acted, the defendants were entitled to qualified immunity … Even if the panel decided that the plaintiffs had established a Sixth Amendment violation under Weatherford , the defendants would probably be entitled to qualified immunity because it was not clearly established law at the

Barber v. Overton

496 F.3d 449 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Aug 2, 2007

[T]he next, sequential step is to ask whether the right was clearly, established.” Saucier v. Katz, 533 U.S. 194 , 201, 121 S.Ct. 2151 , 150 L.Ed.2d 272 (2001). … Second, determine whether that right was, at the time the violation occurred, clearly established.

Efrem Zembalis Toney v. James M. Davis

23 F.3d 408 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Apr 20, 1994

Davis filed a motion for summary judgment, which he amended to include the defense of qualified immunity, arguing that the alleged conduct did not violate clearly established law at the time of the events in controversy. … We limit our discussion to the question of qualified immunity. 5 The standard for qualified immunity is that a defendant, acting under color of office, is immune from liability unless he violated clearly establish constitutional

Baranski v. Fifteen Unknown Agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms

401 F.3d 419 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Mar 14, 2005

As to the forfeiture, the court found: “Not only did the evidence clearly establish that the seized weapons were covered by the fraudulent law enforcement letters, but the Government’s evidence at trial clearly established … “In determining whether an official is entitled to qualified immunity, this court asks whether the law was clearly established at the time of the alleged action.” Id. (citing Barton, 106 F.3d at 1293 ).

Spencer v. Sutterfield

66 F. App'x 569 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · May 28, 2003

In actions seeking damages under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 , qualified immunity protects a public official from *573 being sued as long as the official “does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which … , if so, whether that constitutional right was so clearly established that a reasonable official would understand that the particular conduct would violate that right.

Elizabeth Hoard, Administratrix of the Estate of Russell A. Hoard Thomas Bentley Vernon Muncy Nancy Wooton Joan Gay Carl Wooton Norman Couch Elias Collett Dean Adams Stevie Caldwell Leslie Huff Martin Muncy Ronnie Huff Ronnie Sizemore Levi Muncy Betty Baker Clyde Conway Vance George Sizemore and Steve Collins v. Onzie Sizemore, in His Individual Capacity as Leslie County Judge/executive, (97-5540), Onzie Sizemore, in His Official Capacity as Leslie County Judge/executive Ruie Caldwell, Individually and in His Official Capacity as Magistrate of Leslie County, Kentucky Billy Sizemore, in His Official Capacity as Magistrate of Leslie County, Kentucky James H. Boggs, Individually and in His Official Capacity as Magistrate of Leslie County, Kentucky William Lewis, Individually and in His Official Capacity As

198 F.3d 205 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Nov 17, 1999

immunity, i.e., whether a given set of facts violates clearly established law." … clearly established law.

Donald Freed v. Michelle Thomas

Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Sep 6, 2023

The district court granted qualified immunity to Thomas in her individual capacity because it found that she “did not violate a right that was ‘clearly established at the time of defendant[’s] alleged misconduct.’”2 To overcome … Thomas’s claim of qualified immunity, Freed “must show that (1) the [officials] violated one of [his] constitutional rights and (2) that right was clearly established.”

Henry v. Metropolitan Sewer District

922 F.2d 332 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · Dec 27, 1990

The doctrine of qualified immunity affords protection against individual liability for civil damages to officials “insofar as their conduct does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which … This fact, by itself, makes us wary of the plaintiff’s contention that his vaguely-defined right to privacy was “clearly established” in 1985 for purposes of qualified immunity.

Miller v. Administrative Office of the Courts

448 F.3d 887 · Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit · May 23, 2006

Whether, considering the allegations in a light most favorable to Miller, her termination violated a "clearly established" constitutional right 51 The second step of the qualified immunity analysis is to determine whether … the constitutional right that was violated was "clearly established."