Smith et al v. City of Montgomery et al

Filing 78

OPINION. Signed by Honorable Judge Myron H. Thompson on 6/26/2014. (wcl, )

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES FOR THE
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF ALABAMA, NORTHERN DIVISION

CAROLYN SMITH; ISAIAH
SMITH; ANTONIO HAIGLER;
and KANESHIA HAIGLER, as
guardian and next friend
of the minor, S.M.,

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Plaintiffs,
v.
CITY OF MONTGOMERY,
ALABAMA; et al.,
Defendants.

CIVIL ACTION NO.
2:12cv1037-MHT
(WO)

OPINION
Three of the four plaintiffs in this case, Carolyn
Smith, Isaiah Smith, and Antonio Haigler, brought this
lawsuit

against

defendant

others,

claiming

that

City

of

several

Montgomery

Montgomery

and

police

officers violated their constitutional rights against
excessive

force.

U.S.C.

1331

§§

rights).

The

Jurisdiction
(federal

case

is

is

question)
now

before

proper
and
the

under

1343
court

28

(civil
on

the

city’s motion for summary judgment; the motion will be
granted.

The Smiths and Haigler each bring a claim against
the

city

under

Fourth

and

Fourteenth

enforced through 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
the

officers’

conduct

Amendments,

as

Even assuming that

violated

the

plaintiffs’

constitutional rights, “‘[p]roof of a single incident
of

unconstitutional

impose

liability’

activity

against

a

is

not

sufficient

municipality.”

Craig

to
v.

Floyd County, Ga., 643 F.3d 1306, 1310 (11th Cir. 2011
(quoting City of Okla. City v. Tuttle, 471 U.S. 808,
823–24 (1985) (plurality opinion)).

A plaintiff must

show that the constitutional violation resulted from
the city’s “policy or custom.”

Monell v. Department of

Social Services, 436 U.S. 658, 694-95 (1978).
The

plaintiffs

put

forward,

as

the

policy

or

custom, only the fact that the city equipped its police
officers with mace spray and Tasers.

This policy is

insufficient to state a claim against the city.
use

of

mace

or

a

Taser

constitutional violation.
F.3d

1279

(11th

is

not

necessarily

The
a

See Draper v. Reynolds, 369

Cir.

2004)

2

(Taser

use

not

constitutionally excessive); McCormick v. City of Fort
Lauderdale, 333 F.3d 1234, 1245 (11th Cir. 2003) (same
for pepper spray).
these

tools

does

Therefore, equipping officers with
not

constitute

an

unconstitutional

policy or custom.
***
Accordingly, summary judgment will be entered in
favor of the city and against the Smiths and Haigler.
An appropriate judgment will be entered.
DONE, this the 26th day of June, 2014.
/s/ Myron H. Thompson
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE