KLLF Files Brief on Behalf of Civil Rights and Criminal Defense Groups Urging Court of Appeals to Adopt Fair Rules for Police Misconduct Lawsuits

KLLF has filed a “friend of the court” brief on behalf of leading civil rights and criminal defense organizations asking the U.S. Court of Appeals to make clear that victims of police misconduct can sue officers who fabricate evidence against them, regardless of the specific procedure that was used to dismiss the underlying criminal charges.

The brief was filed in support of two civil rights plaintiffs seeking to have their lawsuits reinstated after lower courts dismissed the claims because the two men’s criminal charges were dropped without a clear finding of innocence.

One of the plaintiffs, Andrew Smalls, was charged with gun possession, but got those charges dismissed after a state court ruled that the police had conducted an unconstitutional search. Mr. Smalls, who has always maintained that he never possessed a gun, sued the police and won before a federal jury, only to have the verdict overturned when a judge decided he had defeated the criminal charges on a mere technicality.

The other plaintiff, Deshawn Daniels, was arrested during a traffic stop and brutalized by the NYPD, then charged with weapons possession after officers allegedly made up a story about finding a knife in his jacket pocket. His criminal charges were dismissed based on an agreement with prosecutors, but a federal judge ruled last year that he could not sue the officers for the false charges because his plea deal did not formally exonerate him.

KLLF’s brief explains that barring lawsuits like these would give police carte blanche to fabricate evidence in criminal investigations and worsen unfair power imbalances in the criminal justice system.

KLLF submitted the brief on behalf of the ACLU, Bronx Defenders, the Cato Institute, the Center for Appellate Litigation, the Center on the Administration of Criminal Law at NYU, the Legal Aid Society, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the National Police Accountability Project, the NYCLU, the NYS Chief Defenders Association, the NYS Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and New York City’s Office of the Appellate Defender. Read a copy of the brief here.