The Minnesota Lawyer
MINNESOTA — A plaintiff could not recover damages for the use of excessive force when he suffered only minor injuries as a result of a police officer tasing him during a traffic stop, the 8th Circuit has ruled in affirming judgment.
The plaintiff was one of three passengers in a vehicle when police stopped his wife on suspicion of drunk driving. A police officer used a Taser on the plaintiff during the traffic stop.
The officer claimed that his actions were justified because the plaintiff attempted to interfere with the arrest of his wife.
In his Sec. 1983 suit, the plaintiff argued that the use of the Taser was unjustified because he had only complained that the officer was handling his wife in an inappropriate manner.
But the court concluded that the use of the Taser was reasonable based on the hostility shown by the plaintiff’s wife, the plaintiff himself and the two other passengers in the vehicle, particularly in light of the fact that the plaintiff suffered no permanent injuries.
“[T]he lack, or minor degree, of any injury sustained during an arrest is relevant in considering the reasonableness of the force used. Similarly, the injuries sustained by [the plaintiff] are relevant in measuring the reasonableness of the force used by [the officer]. During the course of his arrest, [the plaintiff] sustained only minor scrapes and two Taser puncture marks which did not require medical treatment,” the court said.
The decision is Cook v. City of Bella Villa.
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