McSherry

Leonard McSherry appeals the district court’s order granting defendant City of Long Beach’s (“City’s”) motion for judgment as a matter of law under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 50. The court granted defendant’s motion on the first day scheduled for trial, prior to the presentation of any evidence in the case. We conclude that the motion was inappropriately granted, and accordingly reverse and remand the decision.

McSherry also appeals the denial of two evidentiary motions in limine and requests reassignment of the case to a different judge on remand. We cannot review the district court’s evidentiary rulings because those rulings are not final decisions reviewable under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We deny the request for reassignment.

I.

Plaintiff McSherry brings this civil action against the City of Long Beach, alleging that the City and its employees, Officers Turley and Roberson, violated his constitutional rights during an investigation that led to his conviction for child molestation. McSherry had served nearly fourteen years of a 48-year to life prison sentence before DNA evidence exonerated him and the Superior Court of Los Ange-les County ordered his release.

The…