Gaddis v. City of Detroit

649 F.Supp.3d 469

Mark Twain GADDIS, Plaintiff, v. CITY OF DETROIT, et al., Defendants.

Case No. 18-cv-13763

United States District Court, E.D. Michigan, Southern Division

Signed January 4, 2023

Holland Locklear, William H. Goodman, Julie H. Hurwitz, Goodman Hurwitz & James, P.C. Law Offices of Holland Locklear, PLLC, Detroit, MI, Allison L. Kriger, Mark J. Kriger, La Rene & Kriger, P.L.C., Detroit, MI, David Samuel Shiener, Gordon Rees Skully Mansukhi, LLP, Bloomfield Hills, MI, Melissa A. Brown, The Law Office of Melissa A. Brown, Wyandotte, MI, for Plaintiff.

Charles N. Raimi, Detroit Medical Center, Legal Affairs, Detroit, MI, Edward V. Keelean, Krystal A. Crittendon, Gregory B. Paddison, Philip J. Hiltner, City of Detroit Law Department, Detroit, MI, for Defendants.

OPINION AND ORDER DENYING DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT (ECF No. 75)

MATTHEW F. LEITMAN, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

On July 21, 2017, City of Detroit Police Officers Stephen Kue, Justin Marroquin, and Wallace Richards chased, shot, and eventually arrested Plaintiff Mark Twain Gaddis. The officers claimed that they took these actions because they saw Gaddis with a firearm and because Gaddis disobeyed their lawful commands and pointed the firearm at them. Gaddis was later charged with several crimes based upon the officers' allegations against him, but a jury acquitted him of all charges. Gaddis then brought this action against Kue, Marroquin, Richards, and other officers who were involved in the investigation that led to his criminal charges. He asserts claims of excessive force, false arrest, and malicious prosecution under 42 U.S.C. § 1983. He also brings a municipal liability claim against the City of Detroit in which he alleges that the customs, policies, and practices of the Detroit Police Department (the "DPD") led directly to the violations of his constitutional rights. All of the Defendants have now moved for summary judgment.

The Defendants' motion violates the cardinal rule of summary judgment practice: It does not take the facts in the light most favorable to Gaddis. On the contrary, the Defendants repeatedly credit their own testimony over conflicting testimony from other witnesses, and they draw inferences in their favor where the evidence reasonably supports a contrary inference that undermines their position. When the facts are properly viewed in the light most favorable to Gaddis, it becomes clear that all of Gaddis' claims are supported by sufficient evidence to withstand summary judgment. The Court therefore DENIES the Defendants' motion for summary judgment.

I

A

The facts most favorable to Gaddis are as follows. On the evening of July 21, 2017, Gaddis attended a gathering with family and friends outside his aunt's home on Winthrop Street in Detroit, Michigan. (See Gaddis Dep., ECF No. 100-3, PageID.6766-6768.) The home was on a "safe" street, and the attendees at the gathering felt comfortable congregating in the front yard. (Witness Vincent Houston Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-2, PageID.6731-6734.¹) Gaddis did not have a gun while he was at the gathering. (See Gaddis Interrogation Statement, ECF No. 75-24, PageID.5605.)

At roughly 9:45 p.m., Kue, Marroquin, and Richards drove down Winthrop Street in a vehicle with its headlights turned off. (See Houston Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-2, PageID.6731-6733.) Kue and Richards were seated in the front of the vehicle; Marroquin was in the rear. (See Activity Log, ECF No. 75-5, PageID.5192.) The vehicle was a black, "semi-marked" Dodge Charger, meaning that it had "Detroit Police" printed on both sides of the vehicle in dark grey letters. (Kue Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-6, PageID.6924.) Given the time of night and lack of daylight, the grey "Detroit Police" marking on the vehicle was "not easy to see" (Kue Dep. Tr., ECF No. 100-11, PageID.7543), and residents on Winthrop Street were not able to identify the vehicle as a police car. (See Houston Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-2, PageID.6734.) Moreover, the officers were not wearing standard police uniforms. (See Kue Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-6, PageID.6923.) Instead, they wore dark clothing and tactical vests with the word "Police" on the front and back. (Id.)

As Kue, Marroquin, and Richards drove closer to the Gaddis family gathering, they double-parked their vehicle behind another vehicle in a spot where the individuals at the gathering could not see it. (See Houston Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-2, PageID.6732; see also Gaddis Dep., ECF No. 100-3, PageID.6776.) After parking, the officers "jumped out of the car" with their guns drawn and rushed toward the gathering. (Houston Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-2, PageID.6725-6727.) As they charged forward, they did not identify themselves as police officers. The only thing they said was: "Does anybody have any weapons?" (Id.)

Because it was dark and because Kue, Marroquin, and Richards rushed onto the lawn so quickly without identifying themselves, Gaddis did not realize that they were police officers. (See Gaddis Dep., ECF No. 100-3. PageID.6792). Instead, he was concerned that they might be criminals coming to do harm, and he feared for his safety. (See id., PageID.6785.) So he began to run away from the officers. (See id., PageID.6782.) The others gathered on the lawn also seemed to fear the approaching officers, and they all "scattered" as the officers rushed toward them. (Id.)

Kue, Marroquin, and Richards chased after Gaddis. (See id.) As they ran behind him, they screamed at him, swore at him, and threatened to shoot him if he did not stop running. (See id., PageID.6782-6784; see also Witness Roy Robinson Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-4, PageID.6852.)

Eventually, the three officers caught up to Gaddis on the porch of a nearby home. (See Witness Dana Bonney Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-12, PageID.7574.) Gaddis fell, and the officers began "kickin'," "hittin'," and "stompin' " his body. (Id., PageID.7574-7575.) At some point, the officers wrestled Gaddis into some overgrown bushes and continued "beatin' " and "hittin' " him while they cursed at him. (Robinson Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-4, PageID.6856.) Gaddis eventually managed to break free from the officers and continued running away from them. (See id., PageID.6868.) As he fled, his back was to the officers, his arms were spread wide, and his hands were empty and "wide open." (Id., PageID.6869.)

While Gaddis was running away with his empty hands visible, Kue and Marroquin fired six gunshots at his back. (See Kue Dep., ECF No. 100-11, PageID.7554-7555; Marroquin Dep., ECF No. 102-2, PageID.9263.) One of the shots hit Gaddis in his buttocks; another struck Gaddis in the ankle. (See Gaddis Hospital Records, ECF No. 100-8, PageID.7021.) Gaddis collapsed and "did not get up again." (Robinson Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-4, PageID.6869.)

As Gaddis was laying on the ground injured, witnesses saw Richards pick up a handgun from the ground. (See id., PageID.6869-6870.) The officers later claimed that Gaddis had discarded the gun as he fled (see Kue Dep. Tr., ECF No. 75-9, PageID.5244), but that contention cannot be squared with much of the evidence. For instance, the gun was laying on a street corner that was some distance from where Gaddis fell after he was shot, and witnesses who saw Gaddis running from the officers did not see him throw or drop a gun, did not see him pull a gun from under his shirt or clothing, and did not see a gun fall off of him. (See Bonney Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-12. PageID.7577-7580; see also Robinson Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-4. PageID.6869-6872.)

The officers eventually arrested Gaddis and transported him to Sinai-Grace Hospital. (See Gaddis Hospital Records, ECF No. 100-8, PageID.7021.)

B

The officers tell a different version of events. Kue testified that the officers first encountered Gaddis "standing in the middle of the street," not while he was gathered with friends and family in the front yard of a home. (Kue Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-6, PageID.6928.) Kue said that he then drove the officers' police vehicle up "right next" to, and "[w]ithin arm's reach" of, Gaddis. (Id., PageID.6929-6930.) At that point, Kue stopped the vehicle and made eye contact with Gaddis. (Id., PageID.6930.) Gaddis then "turned around, made eye contact with [Kue], and [. . .] appeared nervous, his eyes widened, and his mouth opened." (Id.) Kue next "illuminated [Gaddis] with [Kue's] flashlight." (Id.) When Kue did so, he "observed a hand gun[ ] protruding from [Gaddis'] waistband." (Id.)

Gaddis then "took off running, on foot." (Id., PageID.6932.) Kue stopped the car, exited the vehicle, and yelled that Gaddis had a gun. (See id.) The officers then began "chas[ing]" Gaddis on foot. (Id.) As Kue was pursuing Gaddis, he yelled "police, stop," but Gaddis continued to flee. (Id., PageID.6933.) Eventually, Gaddis jumped over a fence into the yard of a nearby home, and he collided with Richards. (See id., PageID.6933-6934.) The two "fell over[ ] onto [a] porch," and Richards and Marroquin attempted to "detain" Gaddis. (Id.) Gaddis resisted, struggled, "broke free from [the] officers," and "bladed [i.e., turned] his body toward [the officers] with his handgun in his hand." (Kue Dep., ECF No. 75-8, PageID.5234. See also id., PageID.5242 (explaining that Gaddis "bladed his body while he was running").) Gaddis then "pointed the gun towards [the officers'] direction." (Id., PageID.5242.) At that point, Kue "fired [his] first two shots at [Gaddis]." (Kue Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-6, PageID.6938.) Gaddis took two or three more steps and then fell to the ground. (See id., PageID.6938-6939.) He then stood up and "blade[d] his body again." (Kue Dep., ECF No. 75-8, PageID.5242.) Kue responded by firing two more shots at Gaddis. (See id., PageID.5243.) Marroquin also shot at Gaddis. (See id., PageID.5244.) Gaddis then "dropp[ed] the gun" and fell "into the middle of the street." (Kue Trial Tr., ECF No. 100-6, PageID.6940.) The officers then secured Gaddis and the weapon.

C

After the officers took Gaddis into...