Miller v. Placer County

MEMORANDUM *

Placer County Sheriffs Deputies appeal the district court’s denial of their motion for summary judgment based on qualified immunity. The plaintiffs, Chris, Penny and Corinne Miller, a ten-year-old child, filed a Section 1983 action claiming that the defendant deputies violated the Fourth Amendment while executing a search warrant in their home. The facts are not materially disputed. The deputies had a warrant to search for marijuana. They entered the house and handcuffed the mother, ordering her and the young child to sit down while deputies located the father in a bedroom. The deputies’ guns were drawn and pointed at the mother and child for approximately 10-15 minutes.

The district court denied the deputies’ qualified immunity motions against the Millers’ claims that the deputies (1) used excessive force by pointing guns at Penny and Corinne; (2) used excessive force against Chris Miller when seating him, pushing him and grabbing him; and (3) engaged in an unreasonable seizure by yelling at Chris Miller and denying him food, water, and the use of a bathroom during a four-hour search. The deputies argued that they were entitled to qualified immunity against Penny’s…