Jose Garcia v. Derrick Perez

MEMORANDUM

Plaintiff-Appellant Jose Francisco Garcia (Garcia) appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Defendants-Appellees Derrick Perez and Michael Morehouse (the officers) on his federal civil rights claims.

The officers cross-appeal, arguing that the district court erred when it failed to dismiss Garcia’s complaint on the basis of the Heck doctrine.

1. The district court erred when it granted summary judgment in favor of the officers based on qualified immunity. Specifically, the district court erroneously concluded that the officers’ statement of facts were “uncontroverted” and “controlling,” without considering Garcia’s verified complaint as opposing evidence. See Jones v. Blanas, 393 F.3d 918, 923 (9th Cir.2004) (recognizing that verified pleadings are admissible to oppose summary judgment). We remand for the district court to reconsider the motion for summary judgment after taking into account the video, Garcia’s verified complaint, the officers’ declarations, and other admissible evidence submitted by the parties. We leave to the district court to determine in the first instance whether the claim should be analyzed as an excessive force claim…