Galbraith

This appeal involves a claim that a county coroner falsified an autopsy report, leading to the false arrest and prosecution of plaintiff Nelson Galbraith (“Galbraith”) for murder in violation of his constitutional rights. The central question is whether a heightened pleading standard should continue to apply to constitutional tort claims in which improper motive is an element. See Branch v. Tunnell, 937 F.2d 1382, 1385-88 (9th Cir.1991). In light of intervening Supreme Court cases, we hold that the Branch heightened pleading standard no longer applies. See Crawford-El v. Britton, 523 U.S. 574, 118 S.Ct. 1584 , 140 L.Ed.2d 759 (1998); Swierkiewicz v. Sorema N.A., 534 U.S. 506 , 122 S.Ct. 992 , 152 L.Ed.2d 1 (2002). Because Galbraith’s amended complaint adequately states claims for relief under the Fourth Amendment absent the heightened pleading standard, see Fed.R.Civ.P. 8(a)(2), we reverse the district court’s order dismissing the complaint with prejudice and remand for further proceedings. We affirm the district court’s dismissal of the due process claims, however, because the more specific provisions of the Fourth Amendment govern our analysis. See County of Sacramento…