Some good news from a federal appeals court re: cops' qualified immunity: [View all]

[Ocelot II]

A Minneapolis police officer who shot two service dogs in 2017 acted unreasonably and should not be protected under qualified immunity, a federal appeals panel ruled this week.

Qualified immunity shields police officers and other public officials from being sued if they are acting reasonably within the duties of their jobs. But officer Michael Mays lost this protection when he hopped the fence that day, responding to an accidentally triggered home alarm system, and repeatedly shot two pit bulldogs who greeted him, according to the U.S. Court of Appeals Eighth Circuit decision.

The appeals court's decision, which affirms a previous ruling by Chief U.S. District Judge John Tunheim, means a lawsuit against Mays and the city of Minneapolis can move forward. Minneapolis City Attorney Jim Rowader declined to comment for this story...

While his partner knocked on the front door, Mays jumped a 6-foot privacy fence in the backyard. A police report said the dogs "charged at [the] officer," but surveillance footage told a different story. One of the dogs, a 60-pound male called Ciroc that served as a support dog for one of LeMay's children, "walked toward Mays wagging his tail in a friendly manner to greet Mays," according to the lawsuit. Mays then shot Ciroc in the face.

https://www.startribune.com/federal-appeals-court-minneapolis-cop-who-shot-service-dogs-wont-be-shielded-by-qualified-immunity/600117843/

The dogs survived but can no longer work as service dogs. Link to the court's opinion: https://ecf.ca8.uscourts.gov/opndir/21/11/202632P.pdf