Police Misconduct
Police Misconduct is a legal term used to describe a broad range of improper and unlawful actions by law enforcement officers and others that result in compensable injuries to the public. Such cases may result in claims against the individual officers, the law enforcement agencies employing them, or the gevernment entities under whose jurisdiction they fall.
Depending upon the nature of the injury and the manner in which it came about, the claim may be based upon general principals of state law or the United States Constitution. There are special rules and provisions regarding the assertion of such claims when they involve government entities and their agencies, As a potential client who may have sustained injuries and damages at the hands of the police or other law enforcement actions, it is important that you consult with an attorney familiar with this area of law to determine as quickly as possible whether you have a justifiable claim. The time to assert such claims is limited by law and may require statutory notices that are much shorter in time than ordinarily provided for by the statute of limitations applicable for similar claims against non-governmental defendants.
In other words, as an example only, while in Georgia you usually have two years from the date of injury to assert a legal claim for personal injuries against an ordinary defendant, you must give an Anti-litem Notice of your claim to a Municipality within 180 days of the injury producing event and give a similar notice to a County or State gevermental entity within 12 months, or your claims under State law could be barred. Consequently, for claims against governmental entities, it is important to seek legal advice from an experienced attorney as quickly as practical.
We have over 25 years experience in handling cases involving local goverment and law enforcement officials. We have successfully represented plaintiffs in cases involving rights protected by theFirst, Fourth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, as well as many cases involving other State and Federal Laws.
In a recent case, we successfully represented the family of a 12 year old youth who accidentally shot and killed himself with a Police Service Pistol that had been handed to him by a local municipal police officer. While the child was playing with it, posturing in front of a mirror and pointing it at himself, the officer became distracted and the weapon discharged, killing the boy almost instantly.
Although the officer was off duty and not acting in any official capacity, we were successful in a lawsuit in State Court against the local municipality that employed the officer, as well as another local municipality that had previously employed the officer. The claims in the lawsuits were based upon the negligent hiring and retention of the officer by the present employer who knew or should have known he was unsafe and unfit, and upon the misrepresentation by the previous employer as to the officer's qualifications, fitness, and safety. We ultimately recovered $1,500,000.00 from both Municipalities.
The above summary is provided merely as one example of the type of lawsuit that is commonly described as Police Misconduct. Such cases can, and often do, involve situations where excessive or unreasonable force was used by the police, as well as cases involving unlawful arrest, false imprisonment, malicious prosecution and the like. While we can not describe each and every circumstance on this site that might represent Police Misconduct, we can urge you to consult with an experienced attorney should you suffer an injury from actions of the police you believe were improper or unjustified.