• Source: Barnes v. Felix

      • Barnes v. Felix is a pending United States Supreme Court case on excessive force claims under the Fourth Amendment. The court will decide whether courts should apply the “moment of the threat” doctrine, which looks only at the narrow window in which a police officer's safety was threatened to determine whether his actions were reasonable, in evaluating claims that police officers used excessive force under the Fourth Amendment.
      Oral arguments are scheduled to be held on 22 January 2025.


      Background


      On 28 April 2016, 24 year old Ashtian Barnes was driving a rented Toyota Corolla on the Harris County Tollway in Houston, Texas when he was pulled over by Officer Roberto Felix Jr. due to toll violations connected to the car. Felix ordered Barnes to exit the vehicle and pulled out his gun without any threat to his safety. Then, the car began rolling forward while the door was open and Felix jumped onto the car, pointed his gun at Barnes head, and shot him, killing Barnes.
      Barnes' mother brought an excessive force claim against Felix on his behalf. The Fifth Circuit dismissed her claim, citing the “moment-of-threat” doctrine.


      = Precedent

      =
      In 1985, the Supreme Court ruled in Tennessee v. Garner that the use of deadly force by police is unconstitutional "unless it is necessary to prevent the escape and the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others."
      In 1989, the court clarified in Graham v. Connor that when hearing a claim, courts must consider the "totality of the circumstances" .


      = "Moment-of-threat" doctrine

      =
      The First, Third, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuit Courts accept and apply the totality doctrine. While the Second, Fourth, Fifth, and Eighth circuits all reject the totality doctrine and apply the "moment-of-theat" doctrine. The "moment-of-theat" doctrine evaluates Fourth Amendment violations only within the context of the narrow window when the officer's safety is allegedly threatened, excluding the events that precede it.


      See also


      List of pending United States Supreme Court cases


      References

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