Estate of Kosakoff Ex Rel. Kosakoff v. City of San Diego

MEMORANDUM

Defendants appeal the district court’s decision to deny summary judgment on the basis of qualified immunity to Officers Lenahan and Douglas. “[A] district court’s denial of a claim of qualified immunity, to the extent that it turns on an issue of law, is an appealable ‘final decision’ within the meaning of 28 U.S.C. § 1291 notwithstanding the absence of a final judgment.” Mitchell v. Forsyth, 472 U.S. 511, 530 , 105 S.Ct. 2806 , 86 L.Ed.2d 411 (1985). Exercising our jurisdiction to review questions of law, we affirm.

To a large degree, Defendants’ argument asks us to review “the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the trial court’s conclusion that an issue of fact exists,” which we lack jurisdiction to do. Jeffers v. Gomez, 267 F.3d 895, 903 (9th Cir.2001) (per curiam). We deny Plaintiffs’ motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction, because Defendants do raise questions of law that we have jurisdiction to decide. But we cannot consider Defendants’ arguments to the extent that they challenge the district court’s determination of what facts a reasonable jury could find.

As to the legal issues within our jurisdiction, we review de novo. Watkins v. City of Oakland,…