Taylor v. Hughes et al
Filing
231
MEMORANDUM Opinion and Order. Signed by the Honorable Manish S. Shah on 3/29/2017: Taylor's motion to stay, 188 , defendants' motion to strike, 213 , and Taylor's motion to strike, 226 , are denied. Taylor's motion for summar y judgment, 190 , is also denied. Defendants' motion for summary judgment, 185 , is granted in part. Summary judgment is granted in favor of defendants with respect to Counts I-VI. Summary judgment on Count VII is denied with respect to Weitzman, but granted in favor of the remaining defendants. [For further detail see attached order.] A status hearing is set for 4/12/17 at 9:30 a.m. Notices mailed. (psm, )
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS
EASTERN DIVISION
ROBERT A. TAYLOR,
Plaintiff,
No. 13 CV 04597
v.
RICKY A. HUGHES, et al.,
Judge Manish S. Shah
Defendants.
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
After an informant told Chicago police officer Ricky Hughes that plaintiff
Robert Taylor, a convicted felon, had a gun in Taylor’s apartment, Hughes procured
a warrant to search Taylor and the apartment located at 645 West 62nd Street,
Apartment 1S. But the address of Taylor’s apartment, and the one that police
actually searched, was 643 West 62nd Street, Apartment 1N. After officers searched
the apartment and found a gun, an investigative alert was issued for Taylor. He
was later arrested, held in custody for several months, and tried for the crime of
unlawful use of a weapon. The judge made note of the incorrect address on the
search warrant, quashed the arrest, and found Taylor not guilty. A few months
later, police officers detained Taylor again, acting on the same investigative alert as
before, and it took about an hour to clear up the confusion and release him. Taylor
believes his constitutional rights were violated due to the search, arrest,
prosecution, and detention. He brought claims against Hughes and other officers
involved, and both sides move for summary judgment.
I.
Legal Standards
Summary judgment is appropriate if the movant shows that there is no
genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a
matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). A genuine dispute as to any material fact exists
if “the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the
nonmoving party.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986). The
party seeking summary judgment has the burden of establishing that there is no
genuine dispute as to any material fact. See Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317,
323 (1986). A court must “construe all facts and reasonable inferences in the light
most favorable to the non-moving party.” Apex Digital, Inc. v. Sears, Roebuck, &
Co., 735 F.3d 962, 965 (7th Cir. 2013). On cross-motions for summary judgment, a
court must draw inferences “in favor of the party against whom the motion under
consideration was made.” McKinney v. Cadleway Props., Inc., 548 F.3d 496, 500 (7th
Cir. 2008); see also Bloodworth v. Vill. of Greendale, 475 Fed.Appx. 92, 95 (7th Cir.
2012) (“Cross-motions must be evaluated together, and the court may not grant
summary judgment for either side unless the admissible evidence as a whole—from
both motions—establishes that no material facts are in dispute.”).
II.
Background
A.
The Warrant
Officer Ricky Hughes worked for the Chicago Police Department on the
narcotics team. [200] ¶ 13.1 On June 21, 2011, Hughes met with an informant,
Bracketed numbers refer to entries on the district court docket. The facts are largely
taken from Taylor’s responses to defendants’ LR 56.1 statements, [200] and [225], and
1
2
referred to by the parties as “John Doe,” who said that he had been in Taylor’s
apartment two days earlier, and that Taylor had shown him a gun. [200] ¶ 14. John
Doe told Hughes that Taylor went into a bedroom and emerged with a black .38
revolver. [200] ¶ 14. Hughes reviewed Taylor’s criminal history, which revealed
felony convictions for cannabis delivery and strong-armed robbery. [200] ¶¶ 15–16;
[225] ¶ 4. Hughes did not know if Taylor’s robbery offense involved a gun. [204]
¶ 51. Hughes put together a photo array consisting of Taylor and other individuals
of the same race, gender, and age-group, and John Doe identified Taylor from that
array. [200] ¶¶ 17–18; [225] ¶ 5. Hughes did not believe John Doe was under the
influence of drugs or alcohol, and he saw no other reason to doubt John Doe’s story.
[200] ¶ 19. From their discussion, Hughes gained the impression that John Doe had
some degree of familiarity with Taylor. [200] ¶ 20. But John Doe did not tell Hughes
why Taylor retrieved the gun from the bedroom, which bedroom he went to, how
many bedrooms were in the apartment, or details concerning other occupants of the
apartment. [204] ¶ 35.
defendants’ responses to Taylor’s LR 56.1 statements, [204] and [217], where both the
asserted fact and the opposing party’s response are set forth in one document. Defendants
fault Taylor for including additional facts in his objections to defendants’ facts, and they
move to strike Taylor’s LR 56.1 response. [213]. Defendants filed a reply to Taylor’s LR 56.1
response, detailing each of their objections. Taylor moves to strike that reply. [226].
Defendants’ motion to strike is denied because it is overbroad. Taylor’s motion to strike is
denied because it is unnecessary. Any arguments raised in the LR 56.1 statements,
additional facts included in responses or replies, and statements that are unsupported by
admissible evidence (or where a party fails to follow LR 56.1’s direction to cite to supporting
material in the record) will be disregarded. Only those facts which are properly
controverted will be considered disputed.
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According to Hughes, John Doe could not tell him Taylor’s address, but gave
him an approximate location. [200] ¶ 23; [204] ¶ 36. Hughes, John Doe, and another
officer drove to that area, and John Doe directed them to Taylor’s apartment
building. [200] ¶¶ 22, 24; [204] ¶ 37. From outside the building, John Doe identified
as Taylor’s apartment a front-facing apartment on the first floor. [200] ¶ 25. He also
pointed out the door on front of the west side of the building closest to Taylor’s
apartment. [200] ¶ 28. According to Hughes, John Doe gave him specific
instructions to get to Taylor’s apartment: enter the building through that door, take
the stairs inside to the first floor, walk down the hall, and look for the first door on
the left. [200] ¶ 29. A sign on the building read “643–45,” and Hughes decided that
Taylor’s address was 645 West 62nd Street, rather than 643, because the windows
of Taylor’s apartment were closer to the “45” than to the “643.” [204] ¶ 44. Hughes
thought that Taylor’s apartment number was 1S, because the building was on the
south side of the street. [200] ¶¶ 26–27. According to Hughes, in general, conducting
further research into the layout, ownership, or exact address of an apartment takes
too much time to prove useful. [200] ¶ 31.
Hughes then drafted a search warrant and complaint, identifying as targets
Taylor and “645 W. 62nd Street #1S, a multi-unit building, Chicago, Cook County,
Illinois.” [200] ¶¶ 32, 35. The warrant described the items to be seized as: “Unlawful
use of weapon and any documents showing residency, any paraphernalia used in
the weighing, cutting or mixing of illegal drugs. Any money, any records detailing
illegal drug transactions.” [200] ¶ 33. Though John Doe did not mention any drug
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activity at Taylor’s apartment, Hughes included drugs in the warrant because
“using guns and drugs go hand in hand.” [200] ¶ 34; [204] ¶ 49. Hughes included in
the complaint his meeting with John Doe, the drive-by, and his review of Taylor’s
criminal history. [183-2]. The complaint also stated that Hughes presented John
Doe, along with Doe’s criminal history, to the issuing judge for further questioning.
[183-2] at 2. But it did not include a description of the apartment’s windows or its
location in the building, aside from the address. [204] ¶¶ 57, 59. Hughes read the
complaint he had drafted to John Doe for verification. [200] ¶ 37.
Hughes, John Doe, and the other officer drove to meet with Judge Nicholas
Ford. [200] ¶ 38; [204] ¶¶ 37, 60. Their meeting and conversation took place inside
the car. [204] ¶ 60. Judge Ford put Hughes and John Doe under oath, and he read
the warrant and complaint. [200] ¶¶ 39, 41; [225] ¶ 13. Although it is not mentioned
in the complaint, Hughes told Judge Ford that Taylor had been arrested for strongarmed robbery, but did not tell him that the arrest was in 1992, that it resulted in a
conviction, or whether a gun was involved. [204] ¶ 64. Hughes provided Judge Ford
with John Doe’s criminal history. [200] ¶ 40; [204] ¶ 62. Hughes recalls that John
Doe spoke to Judge Ford, but does not remember details of that conversation. [200]
¶ 42; [204] ¶ 63. John Doe signed the search warrant and complaint, and Judge
Ford signed the warrant. [200] ¶¶ 43, 45.
B.
The Search
In June 2011, Taylor lived in a two-bedroom apartment in an L-shaped, 12unit apartment building located at 643-645 West 62nd Street. [200] ¶ 8; [204] ¶¶ 3–
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4. One section of the building abutted 62nd street and extended south. [204] ¶ 4.
The street address for that section was 643 West 62nd Street. [204] ¶ 4. Behind that
section (at its southern end), the building protruded to the west. [204] ¶ 4. That part
of the building had the street address 645 West 62nd Street. [204] ¶ 4. Each section
of the building housed six apartments: 1N, 1S, 2N, 2S, 3N, and 3S. [204] ¶ 6. The
front of the building displayed the numbers, 643–45, and the structure had separate
entrances for 643 and for 645. [200] ¶¶ 10–11. In June 2011, neither entrance was
labeled. [200] ¶ 11. Taylor’s address was 643 West 62nd Street, Apartment 1N.
[200] ¶¶ 9, 12; [204] ¶ 3. His apartment was on the north end of the building, with
windows facing West 62nd Street. [200] ¶ 9. Apartment 1S of 645 West 62nd Street
was a different unit, at the south end of the building in the other section. [204] ¶ 46.
On June 22, 2011, Hughes arranged a pre-execution meeting of the search
team, consisting of Hughes and defendants Kevin R. Johnson, Russell E. White, Jr.,
Kenneth J. Yakes, Shawn J. Pickett, Richard E. Peck, Jr., Thomas B. Lieber, Scott
M. McWilliams, and Yolanda R. Collier. [204] ¶ 67; [217] ¶ 14. Johnson, a sergeant
who acted as search team supervisor, read the warrant and complaint in support of
the warrant, and was responsible for ensuring that the team was familiar with the
location of the search. [204] ¶ 69. Hughes conveyed to the team the directions he
had received from John Doe. [204] ¶ 72. Following those directions, the team
conducted a forced entry into the apartment, and found five people in one bedroom:
Taylor’s niece, Barbara, Mario Barnes, who identified himself as Taylor’s nephew,
and three children. [204] ¶ 74; [217] ¶ 15. Also in the bedroom was an unlocked safe
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containing a blue semi-automatic gun, a magazine, and some ammunition. [200]
¶ 51; [204] ¶ 75. What Barnes said about the gun is in dispute—Hughes testified
that Barnes denied owning the gun and said Taylor had guns, but Barnes denies
this.2 [200] ¶ 52.
In the second bedroom, officers found Taylor’s employee identification badge
and a utility bill in his name. [200] ¶ 53. They may also have found a live round of
ammunition on the floor, but the parties dispute this based on conflicting
information in the police records documenting the search. [200] ¶ 53. The utility bill
listed the address as 643 West 62nd Street, Apartment 1N, leading Hughes to
realize that the address in the search warrant was incorrect. [200] ¶ 54. But by that
time, the search was already complete. [204] ¶ 55. Taylor was not in the apartment
during the search. [204] ¶ 74.
C.
The Arrests
After the police left, Taylor’s niece called Taylor and told him that the police
wanted to talk to him. [204] ¶ 89. He did so six days later. [204] ¶ 90. In the
meantime, according to defendant Detective Joshua Weitzman, Hughes asked him
to enter an investigative alert for Taylor into the Chicago police database, signaling
probable cause to arrest Taylor, though Hughes does not remember this. [200] ¶ 56;
[204] ¶¶ 86–87. When Taylor went to the police station on June 28, 2011, he was
Defendants object to the declaration of Mario Barnes, who was not deposed by either
party. Barnes was identified as a witness in plaintiff’s disclosures, but Taylor did not
initially provide defendants with his contact information. Barnes’s declaration is dated one
month after the deadline for fact discovery. Taylor’s lack of cooperation in disclosing
Barnes’s information goes against the spirit of the Federal Rules, but the prejudice to
defendants (given that they were aware he was a potential witness and he was not under
the exclusive control of plaintiff) is not so great that his declaration must be disregarded.
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taken into custody on the basis of the investigative alert. [204] ¶ 90. Hughes was
notified of this, met with Taylor, and charged him in a felony complaint with
unauthorized use of a weapon. [204] ¶ 94. Taylor remained in custody for 128 days
until a combined hearing on a motion to quash the arrest and a bench trial on
November 3, 2011. [204] ¶ 95. Hughes admitted at that hearing that the search
warrant misstated Taylor’s address, which Hughes had documented in his police
report, and the court quashed Taylor’s arrest and found him not guilty. [204] ¶ 95.
But the following month, on December 23, 2011, Taylor was arrested again after a
traffic stop, based on the same investigative alert. [204] ¶ 96. This time, he
remained in custody for over an hour until the arresting officers, who are not
parties to this case, realized he had already been arrested and processed for that
alert and let him go. [200] ¶ 61; [204] ¶ 97.
Taylor brings a Fourth Amendment claim against every defendant officer
(except Weitzman) for procuring a warrant through misrepresentation (Count I),
unconstitutional execution of a warrant and entry of a home (Count II), and
unconstitutional search of a home (Count III). In the alternative to Counts II and
III, Taylor alleges liability for Officer Johnson under a theory of supervisory
liability (Count VI). He also complains that his constitutional rights were violated
by every defendant officer due to his arrest on June 28, 2011 (Count IV), and the
following detention, incarceration, and prosecution (Count V), as well as the
December 23, 2011 seizure and detention (Count VII). Count V alleges a malicious-
8
prosecution claim under Illinois law, as well.3 Taylor moves for summary judgment
on Counts I–IV, VI, and VII against a subset of defendants named in each count.
Taylor also moves for a stay on Count V. Defendant officers move for summary
judgment on all counts.
III.
Analysis
A.
John Doe’s Information
Several of Taylor’s claims turn on the validity of the search warrant, which
was based on information provided by the confidential informant, John Doe. Taylor
argues that, because defendants withheld John Doe’s identity, they cannot rely on
information provided by John Doe to support the validity of the warrant. The
government is afforded a limited privilege to withhold the identity of a confidential
informant. United States v. Jefferson, 252 F.3d 937, 940 (7th Cir. 2001). Defendants
made use of that privilege in this case, which Taylor challenged in a motion to
compel. That motion resulted in a grant of additional discovery concerning John
Doe’s reliability and credibility, despite the increased risk that an informed
observer might be able to deduce his identity. See [107], [155]. But Taylor now
compares defendants’ conduct to that of a party claiming privilege to block discovery
and later attempting to present suppressed evidence at trial.
Accepting Taylor’s theory would simplify things, since John Doe served as the
only source of information of criminal activity at the apartment for purposes of
Taylor also brings a claim against the City of Chicago under Monell v. Department of
Social Services of City of New York, 436 U.S. 658 (1978), (Count VIII), but that claim is
stayed and not at issue on these cross-motions for summary judgment.
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procuring the warrant, and without that information, the warrant would be
unsupported by probable cause and thus invalid. But Taylor does not identify any
withheld information that defendants seek to introduce on summary judgment.
Taylor’s arguments in favor of excluding any and all information provided by John
Doe in the analysis of the warrant’s validity are unpersuasive. Taylor may not be
satisfied with the information yielded by the additional discovery, but that is no
more likely the result of the withholding of John Doe’s identity than of fading
memories and Taylor’s discovery strategy. Indeed, though Taylor claims that
blocking direct access to John Doe prevented him from properly assessing John
Doe’s reliability and credibility, his arguments relate more to whether the current
record establishes John Doe’s reliability and credibility, not that any prejudice
results from the consideration of John Doe’s statements. The information provided
by John Doe will not be disregarded.
B.
The Search
Taylor claims that the search warrant was invalid when issued for lack of
probable cause. In reviewing the issuing judge’s probable cause determination,
courts need only evaluate whether that judge had “a substantial basis for
concluding that a search would uncover evidence of a crime.” United States v.
Glover, 755 F.3d 811, 816 (7th Cir. 2014) (citing Illinois v. Gates, 462 U.S. 213, 236
(1983)). When the complaint in support of the warrant is based on an informant’s
tip, the evaluation involves the totality of the circumstances, and consideration of
five factors in particular: (1) the level of detail; (2) the extent of firsthand
10
observation; (3) the degree of corroboration; (4) the time between the events
reported and the warrant application; and (5) whether the informant appeared or
testified before the magistrate. Glover, 755 F.3d at 816. “[N]o one factor necessarily
dooms a search warrant.” Id. (quoting United States v. Johnson, 655 F.3d 594, 600
(7th Cir. 2011)). “[A] deficiency in one factor may be compensated for by a strong
showing in another or by some other indication of reliability.” United States v. Peck,
317 F.3d 754, 756 (7th Cir. 2003) (quoting United States v. Brack, 188 F.3d 748, 756
(7th Cir. 1999)).
Based on the undisputed facts, the complaint supported a finding of probable
cause. Doe’s account was based on the firsthand observation of events that had
occurred just two days earlier. The complaint described a specific type of gun that
Doe saw in Taylor’s possession on that day and on previous occasions, and which
Taylor had retrieved from a bedroom in his apartment. Hughes corroborated Doe’s
story (in part) by having him identify Taylor from a photo array, and driving with
Doe to locate the apartment. Hughes also reviewed Taylor’s criminal record and
found his felony conviction. But as Taylor notes, this constitutes only a minimal
showing of detail and corroboration. See Glover, 755 F.3d at 816–17 (describing an
affidavit with a similar level of detail and degree of corroboration as having “little
detail” and being “minimally corroborated”). The complaint does not elaborate on
the layout of the apartment and in which bedroom the gun was kept, and Hughes
confirmed only minor facts and legal conduct, but not criminal activity. Moreover,
the complaint provides no basis for seizing drug paraphernalia outside of Hughes’s
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perceived (and undisclosed to the issuing judge) link between guns and drugs. But
Hughes presented Doe, the complaint, and Doe’s criminal history to the state-court
judge, “giving the issuing magistrate an opportunity ‘to evaluate the informant’s
knowledge, demeanor, and sincerity.’” United States v. Robinson, 724 F.3d 878, 884
(7th Cir. 2013) (quoting United States v. Sims, 551 F.3d 640, 644 (7th Cir. 2008)).
Taylor argues that the complaint did not provide a sufficient basis for a
finding of probable cause because, in addition to its lack of detail and corroboration,
it lacked information concerning John Doe’s reliability and credibility. Taylor
emphasizes the fact that there is no evidence showing a history of John Doe
providing accurate information to the police, and that the record does not clearly
establish the circumstances surrounding Hughes’s introduction to John Doe or why
John Doe agreed to provide him with information. “[I]nformation about the
informant’s credibility or potential bias is crucial.” Glover, 755 F.3d at 816. There is
sometimes a “concern that the tip was provided to harass or remove a rival.” Id.
(citing United States v. Bell, 585 F.3d 1045, 1050 (7th Cir. 2009). In Glover, the
court discounted the issuing judge’s determination of probable cause as underinformed, due to the omission of known, highly relevant, and damaging information
about the informant’s credibility, including his criminal record. 755 F.3d at 817. But
Taylor presents no evidence to suggest that relevant information was known and
undisclosed at the time. And “an informant’s ‘unknown reliability’ is not necessarily
fatal to the probable-cause determination.” United States v. Dismuke, 593 F.3d 582,
587 (7th Cir. 2010).
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John Doe was presented to a judge, along with his criminal history, and he
spoke to the judge under oath. What they discussed is unknown—Hughes’s
testimony is inconsistent as to whether Hughes remembers the judge asking John
Doe questions about his relationship to Taylor and what the gun looked like, and he
remembers none of John Doe’s responses. The discussion took place in a car, and no
transcript exists. But a discussion took place, and the judge had both the complaint
and Doe’s criminal history. He had sufficient information on John Doe’s credibility
that would have triggered further inquiry if necessary, and “great deference” is
owed to his finding of probable cause. Robinson, 724 F.3d at 884 (citing United
States v. Carson, 582 F.3d 827, 831 (7th Cir. 2009)). Even when Taylor receives the
benefit of any inferences, the judge’s finding was correct as to probable cause for the
gun crime; an eyewitness testified in person and under oath to a judge who had the
ability to question the eyewitness’s credibility, the eyewitness described the
unlawful possession of a gun by Taylor at the premises to be searched, and the
eyewitness’s identification of Taylor was corroborated by photo line-up.
Count I of the complaint alleges that Hughes procured the search warrant
through misrepresentation, because he recklessly relied on John Doe to establish
probable cause. A warrant is invalid if the affiant made a false statement, material
to the finding of probable cause, with intentional or reckless disregard for the truth.
Franks v. Delaware, 438 U.S. 154, 155–56 (1978). As explained above, Hughes
provided the judge enough information to establish that the warrant was supported
by probable cause. Taylor identifies a number of topics on which we have no
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information, like John Doe’s relationship to Taylor, but has not pointed to any
omitted facts whose inclusion would have undermined the finding of probable cause.
Hughes was not reckless in relying upon John Doe or in drafting the complaint in
support of the warrant, and he did not procure the warrant through
misrepresentation. In addition, Taylor presents no evidence that any other named
defendant was personally involved in procuring the warrant. Thus, summary
judgment on Count I is granted in favor of defendants.
Taylor also argues that the warrant is invalid because it misstates the
address of Taylor’s apartment. In addition to probable cause, the Fourth
Amendment requires that a warrant particularly describe the place to be searched
and the persons or things to be seized. Maryland v. Garrison, 480 U.S. 79, 84
(1987). “The validity of the warrant must be assessed on the basis of the
information that the officers disclosed, or had a duty to discover and to disclose, to
the issuing [judge].” Garrison, 480 U.S. at 85. “[O]fficers seeking a search warrant
relying on information provided by a confidential informant are under an obligation
to take reasonable steps to confirm that information before using it in an affidavit
in support of the warrant.” Jacobs v. City of Chicago, 215 F.3d 758, 768 n.4 (7th Cir.
2000) (citing Gates, 462 U.S. at 241–42). Here, the warrant identifies the place to be
searched as 645 West 62nd Street, Apartment 1S, though the officers actually
searched the apartment located at 643 West 62nd Street, Apartment 1N. Thus, on
its face, the warrant does not describe the place to be searched with particularity. In
fact, it describes a distinctly different place, presumably another person’s home.
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Defendants argue that the purpose of the Fourth Amendment is not to
protect against errors like the one here—the misidentification of an apartment in a
multi-unit building—but rather to prevent “wide-ranging exploratory searches.” See
Garrison, 480 U.S. at 84. It is true that officers are afforded “some latitude for
honest mistakes that are made . . . in the dangerous and difficult process of making
arrests and executing search warrants.” Id. at 87. “[A] typographical error in an
address does not invalidate a warrant if the affidavit otherwise identifies the
targeted premises in sufficient detail and there is no chance that another location
might be searched by mistake.” United States v. McMillian, 786 F.3d 630, 640 (7th
Cir. 2015). And if an otherwise valid warrant is revealed to be overbroad or
ambiguous once officers are in the field, it does not necessarily become retroactively
invalid. Garrison, 480 U.S. at 85; see also United States v. Kelly, 772 F.3d 1072,
1082 (7th Cir. 2014) (“The fact that the building’s layout differed from what the
officers were able to discern without having been inside is insufficient to render the
warrant invalid.”)
But this is not a case where the warrant was revealed to be overbroad or
ambiguous when the officers arrived onsite. This was a warrant that identified an
entirely different apartment and did not include any description or directions to the
correct apartment. Instead, the complaint in support of the warrant says that John
Doe “pointed out 645 W. 62nd Street #1S.” [183-2] at 2. There is no evidence that
Hughes gave the issuing judge more information. Even though Hughes knew the
precise location of the apartment, conveyed that information to the rest of the
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search team at the pre-execution meeting, and accompanied the team in executing
the warrant, Hughes’s personal knowledge of the apartment’s location can satisfy
the particularity requirement only if that knowledge was communicated to the
issuing judge. See United States v. Jones, 54 F.3d 1285, 1292 (7th Cir. 1995). That
was not done here. The Fourth Amendment requires that a search warrant describe
the specific areas and things for which there is probable cause to search with such
particularity that an executing officer can “with reasonable effort ascertain and
identify the place intended.” McMillian, 786 F.3d at 639 (quoting Steele v. United
States, 267 U.S. 498, 503 (1925)). Without Hughes’s personal knowledge, no amount
of effort would allow an executing officer to identify and search Taylor’s apartment.
With the warrant as his guide, that officer would end up in a different apartment
entirely. The warrant is therefore invalid for failing to meet the particularity
requirement.
Defendants argue that the execution of the search was nevertheless
constitutional because they had a good-faith belief in the warrant’s validity. “Even if
a warrant is ultimately found to be . . . lacking in particularity, searches conducted
pursuant to the warrant may be valid under the good-faith exception set forth in
United States v. Leon, 468 U.S. 897, 926 (1984). For a warrant search to qualify for
the good-faith exception, however, the officers conducting the search must have
manifested an objective good-faith belief in the validity of the warrant.” Jones v.
Wilhelm, 425 F.3d 455, 464 (7th Cir. 2005) (citation omitted). “There is no dispute
that the officers believed that the warrant authorized the search they conducted.”
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Massachusetts v. Sheppard, 468 U.S. 981, 988 (1984). The only issue is whether that
belief was objectively reasonable.
Hughes’s deduction of Taylor’s address was wrong, but there is no evidence
that his efforts lacked good faith or that an objective, informed observer would
conclude that the listed address was not the apartment targeted by the search.
Hughes thought that confirming addresses through databases or other means would
take too long, and this suggests a lack of diligence on his part. The logic behind
Hughes’s deduction—that every apartment in a building on the south side of the
street would be an “S” apartment and the apartment looked like it was associated
with the signage for “645”—is weak. But Hughes had not been to the apartment
before, and there was no signage indicating the building number above the
entryway. The weakness of his reasoning does not demonstrate that he should have
known he was wrong, because it is undisputed that the exterior of the building did
not provide contrary information. Moreover, Hughes mitigated the risk that the
wrong location would be searched by participating in the search and directing the
team to the correct location. See United States v. Thomas, 263 F.3d 805, 809 (8th
Cir. 2001). This supports a finding of good faith because Hughes (and the other
searching officers) reasonably believed they had secured a valid warrant for Taylor’s
apartment, and that is where they searched.
Taylor argues that Hughes and every officer on the search team should have
figured out that the address was wrong by deducing the correct address from the
geography of the area. Taylor’s argument is based on the expectation that each
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individual officer would question the validity of the warrant after hearing the
directions given to them during the pre-execution meeting. There is no evidence
that the individual officers actually did realize that the apartment they were being
directed to could not be apartment 1S of 645 W. 62nd Street. And the record is clear
that they did not discover the address until after they had identified the apartment
as Robert Taylor’s. It would be unreasonable to expect officers to second-guess the
address on the warrant based on environmental clues when the affiant had given
them specific directions. Once they confirmed they were in Taylor’s apartment,
there was no need to abandon their search. See Garrison, 480 U.S. at 86 (finding
that if executing officers became aware that the warrant contained an inaccurate
address, “they would have been obligated to limit their search to [the target’s]
apartment”). Because the incorrect address listed on the warrant did not invalidate
defendants’ execution of a properly procured search warrant, and Taylor raises no
concerns unrelated to the incorrect address, summary judgment is granted in favor
of defendants on Counts II and III.
Taylor characterizes Count VI of the complaint as an alternative basis for
Johnson’s liability, due to his role in supervising the search. But Taylor’s theory of
supervisor liability depends on the unlawful execution of the search and requires
that Johnson “approved, condoned, or turned a blind eye to [the subordinate
officers’] allegedly unconstitutional actions.” Morfin v. City of E. Chicago, 349 F.3d
989, 1001 (7th Cir. 2003). Taylor must show that Johnson acted “either knowingly
or with deliberate, reckless indifference.” Jones v. City of Chicago, 856 F.2d 985,
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992–93 (7th Cir. 1988). There is no evidence to suggest that Johnson knew or
suspected that the search team was conducting an unconstitutional search but
failed to use his authority to stop the violation. As explained above, Johnson and
the rest of the search team reasonably believed they were lawfully executing a valid
warrant. Therefore, summary judgment is granted in favor of Johnson with respect
to Count VI.
C.
The Seizures
“To prevail on a false-arrest claim under § 1983, a plaintiff must show that
there was no probable cause for his arrest.” Neita v. City of Chicago, 830 F.3d 494,
497 (7th Cir. 2016) (citing Thayer v. Chiczewski, 705 F.3d 237, 246 (7th Cir. 2012));
see also Wheeler v. Lawson, 539 F.3d 629, 634 (7th Cir. 2008) (“Probable cause is an
absolute defense to a claim of wrongful arrest asserted under section 1983 against
police officers.”). An officer has probable cause to arrest if “at the time of the arrest,
the facts and circumstances within the officer’s knowledge . . . are sufficient to
warrant a prudent person, or one of reasonable caution, in believing, in the
circumstances shown, that the suspect has committed, is committing, or is about to
commit an offense.” Neita, 830 F.3d at 497 (quoting Thayer, 705 F.3d at 246). “An
officer’s belief in the existence of probable cause ‘need not be based on evidence
sufficient to support a conviction, nor even a showing that the officer’s belief is more
likely true than false.’” Driebel v. City of Milwaukee, 298 F.3d 622, 643 (7th Cir.
2002) (quoting Woods v. City of Chicago, 234 F.3d 979, 996 (7th Cir. 2000))
(emphasis omitted). “That determination depends on the elements of the underlying
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criminal offense.” Neita, 830 F.3d at 497 (citing Stokes v. Bd. of Educ., 599 F.3d 617,
622 (7th Cir. 2010)).
Taylor was arrested for knowingly possessing a gun as a convicted felon. See
720 ILCS 5/24-1.1(a). It is undisputed that Taylor was a convicted felon in June
2011. As discussed above, John Doe’s information, together with the corroboration
of Taylor’s identity and apartment building and presentation of Doe to a judge,
provided probable cause to believe that Taylor knowingly possessed a firearm (a
revolver) and supported the issuance of a search warrant. That same probable cause
to believe Taylor possessed evidence of a crime was probable cause to believe Taylor
committed a felony. “[P]robable cause to believe that a person has committed any
crime will preclude a false arrest claim, even if the person was arrested on
additional or different charges for which there was no probable cause.” Holmes v.
Vill. of Hoffman Estate, 511 F.3d 673, 682 (7th Cir. 2007).
There also existed probable cause that Taylor committed a crime involving
the weapon actually recovered—the semi-automatic gun. The basis for Hughes’s
belief that Taylor knowingly possessed the gun found during the search is one of
constructive possession. To establish that a person is in constructive possession of a
firearm, the government must establish: “(1) that defendant had knowledge of the
presence of the weapon; and (2) that defendant exercised immediate and exclusive
control over the area when the weapon was found.” People v. Ross, 407 Ill.App.3d
931, (1st Dist. 2011). Knowledge may be inferred by a person’s actions, declarations,
or conduct. People v. Beverly, 278 Ill.App.3d 794, 798 (4th Dist. 1996). Control is
20
established when a person has the “intent and capability to maintain control and
dominion” over an item. People v. Spencer, 2012 IL App (1st) 102094, ¶ 17. And a
person may constructively possess an item even if others have access to the area
where it was recovered. People v. Maldonado, 2015 IL App (1st) 131874, ¶ 43.
Taylor says probable cause was lacking because the gun was found in an
unlocked safe in a bedroom where police found five other people, and Taylor’s ID
and a utility bill bearing his name were found in a different bedroom. Taylor
believes no reasonable person would infer that Taylor had control over a bedroom
occupied by two other adults and three children, where no other possessions of
Taylor were found. Taylor also points out that defendants present no other
circumstantial evidence establishing that Taylor knew there was a gun in the safe
or had access to or control over the bedroom in which it was found. It is true that
there is no record of Taylor’s specific control over the bedroom with the gun, but
Taylor’s living in the apartment is some circumstantial evidence from which one
could infer he knew of the apartment’s contents. There is no evidence that Taylor
was excluded from the bedroom, and the safe was unlocked. Hughes had John Doe’s
information, Taylor’s criminal history, and the recovery of a gun from a bedroom
accessible to several people. Taking the facts in Taylor’s favor, Hughes did not have
Barnes’s statement attributing firearm possession to Taylor. This quantum of
evidence certainly falls short of proof beyond a reasonable doubt, but it is sufficient
to give a prudent person reason to believe that Taylor shared accountability for the
gun in the safe. There was probable cause to arrest Taylor, and defendants are
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entitled to summary judgment on the false-arrest claims arising out of the June
2011 arrest.
In addition, “if the officers can establish that they had ‘arguable probable
cause’ to arrest the plaintiff, then the officers are entitled to qualified immunity,
even if a court later determines that they did not actually have probable cause.”
Williams v. Jaglowski, 269 F.3d 778, 781 (7th Cir. 2001) (citing Humphrey v.
Staszak, 148 F.3d 719, 725 (7th Cir. 1998)). “Arguable probable cause exists when ‘a
reasonable police officer in the same circumstances and with the same knowledge
and possessing the same knowledge as the officer in question could have reasonably
believed that probable cause existed in light of well-established law.’” Humphrey,
148 F.3d at 725 (emphasis omitted) (quoting Gold v. City of Miami, 121 F.3d 1442,
1445 (11th Cir. 1997)).
Hughes could reasonably have believed that Taylor had joint control over the
gun in the safe, even if that safe were in a separate bedroom than the one he
usually occupied, given that Taylor lived in the apartment, multiple people had
access to the bedroom, the safe was not locked, Taylor was a convicted felon who
could not lawfully possess a gun, and John Doe said that Taylor had at least one
gun. While the evidence of constructive possession was thin, it would not be
objectively unreasonable for an officer to believe that probable cause existed.
Therefore, Hughes is shielded from liability.
Weitzman is also entitled to qualified immunity. It is undisputed that he
relied on Hughes’s statements that a search executed in the apartment of a
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convicted felon yielded a gun in initiating the investigative alert that led to Taylor’s
arrest. And Taylor provides no evidence to suggest that Weitzman’s reliance was
unreasonable, even if mistaken. In addition, Taylor presents no evidence that any
other named defendant was personally involved in Taylor’s arrest. Thus, summary
judgment is granted in favor of all defendants with respect to Count IV.
Taylor’s December arrest presents a different issue. Taylor had been
acquitted, so there was no probable cause to arrest him for possession of a gun.
Taylor believes that Hughes and Weitzman, by initiating an investigative alert but
failing to cancel it, caused his arrest after his acquittal. The parties dispute whether
Hughes and Weitzman could have foreseen that Taylor would be arrested again on
the same alert. General principles of causation in tort law, including the
foreseeability requirement, apply to constitutional torts litigated under § 1983. See,
e.g., Parrett v. City of Connersville, 737 F.2d 690, 695 (7th Cir. 1984). But neither
party seems to know who is responsible for canceling investigative alerts. There is
no evidence that Hughes plays any such role, and while Hughes set the
investigative alert in motion in June 2011, there is no evidence from which one
could infer that it would be reasonably foreseeable to Hughes that Taylor would be
arrested post-acquittal. Hughes was not personally involved in the December arrest
and it was not foreseeable to him. Thus, he is entitled to summary judgment on
Count VII. Nonparty Detective David Betz, who eventually did cancel the alert,
testified that he believed Weitzman was supposed to have canceled it. This is
sufficient, drawing the inferences in Taylor’s favor, to find that Weitzman—who
23
placed the alert in the system in the first place—bears sufficient personal
responsibility such that a jury could find him liable for Taylor’s December 2011
arrest. But the record is not so clear that Taylor is entitled to judgment as a matter
of law with respect to Weitzman—he raises a genuine dispute as to his
responsibility for canceling the alert. Therefore, summary judgment is denied on
Count VII with respect to Weitzman. Because Taylor does not allege personal
involvement by any other defendant, summary judgment is granted in favor of all
other named defendants with respect to Count VII.
D.
Malicious Prosecution
Defendants claim that no reasonable jury would find in favor of Taylor with
respect to his claim for malicious prosecution under Illinois law.4 The required
elements of the claim are: (1) the commencement or continuance of a criminal
proceeding by the defendant; (2) the termination of the proceeding in favor of the
plaintiff; (3) the absence of probable cause; (4) malice; and (5) damages. Gauger v.
Hendle, 2011 IL App (2d) 100316. “The absence of any one of these elements bars a
plaintiff from pursuing the claim.” Swick v. Liautaud, 169 Ill.2d 504, 512 (1996).
The same analysis supporting a finding of probable cause to arrest Taylor in
June precludes liability for malicious prosecution. Probable cause in a maliciousprosecution case is defined as “a state of facts that would lead a person of ordinary
care and prudence to believe or to entertain an honest and sound suspicion that the
Defendants argue repeatedly, and without explanation, that Taylor did not properly raise
a state-law malicious-prosecution claim, and that Taylor does not contest that failure. But,
as Taylor mentions in the briefing, the state-law malicious-prosecution claim is alleged in
the amended complaint.
4
24
accused committed the offense charged.” Fabiano v. City of Palos Hills, 336
Ill.App.3d 635, 642 (1st Dist. 2002) (citation omitted). Its existence is “‘determined
by looking to what the defendants knew at the time of subscribing a criminal
complaint’ and not at the (earlier) time of arrest.” Gauger, 2011 IL App (2d) 100316,
¶ 112 (quoting Porter v. City of Chicago, 393 Ill.App.3d 855, 868–69 (1st Dist.
2009)). Probable cause depends on “the state of mind of the person commencing the
prosecution that is at issue—not the actual facts of the case or the guilt or innocence
of the accused.” Id. (quoting Sang Ken Kim v. City of Chicago, 368 Ill.App.3d 648
(1st Dist. 2006)). As explained above, the June arrest was supported by probable
cause, and Taylor does not argue that any new information came to light after the
arrest that would change the probable cause analysis or suggest that probable cause
no longer existed. Therefore, no reasonable juror could find in Taylor’s favor on his
malicious-prosecution claim.
The malicious-prosecution claim also fails because defendants did not
institute or continue criminal charges against Taylor. A malicious-prosecution claim
against police officers is “anomalous,” because “the State’s Attorney, not the police,
prosecutes a criminal action.” Reed v. City of Chicago, 77 F.3d 1049, 1053 (7th Cir.
1996). “Thus, a plaintiff may not maintain a malicious-prosecution claim against an
arresting officer without first showing ‘some postarrest action which influenced the
prosecutor’s decision to indict.’” Colbert v. City of Chicago, No. 16-1362, 2017 WL
985832, at *4 (7th Cir. Mar. 14, 2017) (quoting Snodderly v. R.U.F.F. Drug
Enforcement Task Force, 239 F.3d 892, 902 (7th Cir. 2001)). Taylor presents no
25
evidence that defendants made any false statements or otherwise influenced the
state prosecutor’s decision to indict.5 It is undisputed that the post-search reports
contained Taylor’s correct address. In fact, the state-court judge who quashed the
arrest and found Taylor not guilty in his underlying criminal action explicitly noted
that the police properly documented the inaccuracy of the address listed on the
search warrant. See [183-7] at 23. Summary judgment is granted in favor of
defendants with respect to Taylor’s claim for malicious prosecution under Illinois
law.
Taylor also brings the malicious-prosecution claim under § 1983. Taylor
requested a stay on that claim until the Supreme Court issued its decision in
Manuel v. City of Joliet, Ill., No. 14-9496, 2017 WL 1050976 (U.S. Mar. 21, 2017).
See [188]. The motion for a stay is denied, because the Supreme Court issued its
decision while the motions for summary judgment were under advisement. The
Court held that unlawful pretrial detention, even after the start of legal process, is
a cognizable claim under § 1983 and the Fourth Amendment. Manuel, 2017 WL
1050976, at *8. While the elements of the claim have yet to be determined, the
existence of probable cause defeats liability. See id. at *6 (probable cause is
essential for pretrial detention). In addition, defendants cannot be liable for Taylor’s
pretrial detention where they made no post-arrest action or false statements that
influenced the state prosecutor to indict; they were not personally involved in the
While neither party mentions Taylor’s indictment, or how an indictment may or may not
affect his claims, the record reflects that Taylor was indicted after his arrest. See [204] ¶ 95;
[183-5]; [183-6].
5
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allegedly unconstitutional pretrial detention. Summary judgment with respect to
Count V is therefore granted in favor of defendants.
IV.
Conclusion
Taylor’s motion to stay, [188], defendants’ motion to strike, [213], and
Taylor’s motion to strike, [226], are denied. Taylor’s motion for summary judgment,
[190], is also denied. Defendants’ motion for summary judgment, [185], is granted in
part. Summary judgment is granted in favor of defendants with respect to Counts
I–VI. Summary judgment on Count VII is denied with respect to Weitzman, but
granted in favor of the remaining defendants.
ENTER:
___________________________
Manish S. Shah
United States District Judge
Date: 3/29/2017
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