Miller v. Village of Schaumburg et al

Filing 35

MEMORANDUM Order. Signed by the Honorable Milton I. Shadur on 6/28/2013. Mailed notice (meg, )

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
EASTERN DIVISION
JORDAN MILLER,

)
)
Plaintiff,
)
)
v.
)
)
VILLAGE OF SCHAUMBURG,
)
Schaumburg Police Officers
)
MATTHEW HUDAK, Star 3161, and )
TERRANCE O’BRIEN, Star 1794
)

No. 13 C 1601

MEMORANDUM ORDER
Matthew Hudak and Terrance O’Brien, two of the defendants in
this action by Jordan Miller charging them with constitutional
and other violations while they were acting as police officers of
the Village of Schaumburg (named as the third defendant), have
filed their Answer to Miller’s Second Amended Complaint (“SAC”).
Because both individual defendants are facing state and criminal
prosecution in matters that allege criminal activity of the type
charged by Miller, their Answer understandably consists in large
part of their invocation of Fifth Amendment rights.

This sua

sponte memorandum order is directed solely to the two affirmative
defenses (“ADs”) that follow the Answer itself.
As for AD 1, which asserts qualified immunity, it misses the
point that ADs must accept a complaint as true but state a
predicate under which the defendant is nevertheless not liable -see not only Fed.R.Civ.P.8(c) and the many cases applying that
principle, but also App’x ¶ 5 to State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co.
v. Riley, 199 F.R.D. 276, 279 (N.D. Ill. 2001).

Because there is

no way in which a reasonable police officer could have viewed the
conduct alleged by Miller to have been objectively reasonable and
within constitutional limits, a resolution of those allegations
must take place at trial -- hence under the Supreme Court’s
teaching the doctrine of qualified immunity (which is intended to
spare public officials the need to defend themselves against
litigation) plays no role.
2.

Hence AD 1

is stricken.

AD 2 similarly ascribes reasonableness to officer

conduct that cannot be characterized in that fashion when
Miller’s allegations are credited.

AD 2 is stricken as well.

_______________________________
Milton I. Shadur
Senior United States District Judge
Dated:

June 28, 2012

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