Galal

MEMORANDUM *

Plaintiffs-Appellants Mahesh Galal, et al. (“Galals”) filed a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claim against the City of Long Beach (“City”) alleging the City’s failure to obtain an administrative warrant prior to its demolition of the Galals’ vacant and condemned apartment buildings violated the Fourth Amendment. The facts and procedural history of the case are known to the parties and are not recounted here.

The district court correctly concluded that the City is not liable under Monell v. Department of Social Services City New York, 436 U.S. 658 , 98 S.Ct. 2018 , 56 L.Ed.2d 611 (1978) for failing to obtain an administrative warrant. First, the City had a policy of obtaining administrative warrants prior to the demolition of condemned structures. Id. at 691, 694 , 98 S.Ct. 2018 (holding that municipal governments are liable for the acts of employees executing government policy or custom and are not liable under a theory of respondeat superior). Building officer Derheim’s decision not to obtain a warrant contravened this policy. Second, Derheim was a subordinate employee without policymaking authority because he did not have final authority to establish municipal policy with…