Alice Dela Cruz v. Tom Palacios

MEMORANDUM

Plaintiff-Appellant Alice Déla Cruz (“Déla Cruz”) appeals the adverse grant of summary judgment in her 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action for deprivation of familial association and interference with a property interest in the body of her deceased son, Donald Sewell (“Sewell”). We affirm.

Familial Association Claim

As Déla Cruz correctly notes, the proper standard for evaluating her § 1983 claim for deprivation of familial association based on the loss of her son is the Fourteenth Amendment’s stringent “shocks the conscience” standard. Porter v. Osborn, 546 F.3d 1131, 1137-38 (9th Cir.2008). Where, as here, “an officer encounters fast paced circumstances presenting competing public safety obligations,” only actions demonstrating that the officer acted with a “purpose to harm” unrelated to legitimate law enforcement objectives will suffice to establish a claim. Id. at 1139-40 .

Dela Cruz produced no colorable evidence that defendant police officer Andrew Santos (“Santos”) acted with an intent to harm Sewell, other than to stop an attack on himself or innocent bystanders. Even construing the facts in the light most favorable to her, Déla Cruz has not shown that Santos acted with…