Skoog

I. Introduction

This set of appeals arises from a single lawsuit that is still ongoing. The district court granted summary judgment on the basis of qualified immunity to one of the defendants, Officer Herbert Royster, on all but one claim: the plaintiffs claim that Royster seized his still camera in retaliation for the exercise of his First Amendment rights. In 04-35087, Royster inter-locutorily appeals the court’s denial of summary judgment on that claim, and we reverse. Although the plaintiff stated a valid retaliation claim, the right assertedly violated — the right to be free of intentional, retaliatory action for which probable cause exists — was not clearly established. Accordingly, Royster is entitled to summary judgment based on the second prong of our qualified immunity analysis.

In part of 04-35286, the plaintiff, Daniel Skoog, appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment to Royster based on qualified immunity on Skoog’s illegal search and seizure claim. On the facts pled in the complaint, it is clear that probable cause existed for the search and seizure. Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment based on the first prong of the…