varez-Glasman & Colvin’s Senior Partner Roger A. Colvin recently argued the case of Estate of Hernandez, et al. v. City of Pomona, et al., before the California Supreme Court. The case is a 42 U.S.C. 1983 federal civil rights case, stemming from a police shooting. Mr. Colvin argued the case on behalf of the City of Pomona.
Estate of Hernandez has important legal implications for all law enforcement agencies, peace officers, public entities and municipalities throughout the state of California. An adverse ruling by the Supreme Court will subject peace officers and public entities to duplicative and costly re-litigation of whether peace officers’ pre-seizure conduct gives rise to separate liability after a judgment that a use of deadly force was objectively reasonable. In addition, an adverse ruling will create confusion regarding the duty of care peace officers give to dangerous criminal suspects out in the field prior to using deadly force.
This case dealt with two principal issues: First, whether a federal court’s judgment that peace officers’ use of deadly force was reasonable barred the same parties in the federal court case from later proceeding in state court on a state negligence theory to redress the same injury. Second, whether the res judicata ban on “action-splitting” barred plaintiffs’ subsequent state court action because the federal court – not the plaintiffs, “split” the action by declining to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the plaintiffs’ state law claims.
The High Court is expected to reach a decision on these important issues affecting law enforcement by early June 2009.
Roger A. Colvin heads AGC’s Litigation Department and brings over thirty years of litigation experience in the fields of police misconduct and civil rights proceedings. For more information regarding AGC’s Litigation Department, please contact Roger A. Colvin at rcolvin@agclawfirm.com or (562) 699-5500.
