Landwehr
Landwehr v. City of Murrieta
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM ***
Chief of the Murrieta Police Department Mark Wright (“Chief Wright”) and Captain Michael Payne (“Captain Payne”) appeal the district court’s denial of summary judgment. We affirm.
Although a district court’s denial of summary judgment based on qualified immunity is subject to interlocutory appeal as a collateral order, Moran v. Washington, 147 F.3d 839, 843 (9th Cir.1998) (citing Mitchell v. Forsyth, 472 U.S. 511 , 105 S.Ct. 2806 , 86 L.Ed.2d 411 (1985)), the scope of appellate jurisdiction is limited to questions of law. Id. (citing Mitchell, 472 U.S. at 528 n. 9, 105 S.Ct. 2806 ) (“A public-official defendant may appeal the ‘purely legal’ issue ‘whether the facts alleged ... support a claim of clearly established law.’ ”). “[A] defendant, entitled to invoke a qualified immunity defense, may not appeal a district court’s summary judgment order insofar as that order determines whether or not the pretrial record sets forth a ‘genuine’ issue of fact for trial.” Johnson v. Jones, 515 U.S. 304, 319-20 , 115 S.Ct. 2151 , 132 L.Ed.2d 238 (1995).
Chief Wright and Captain Payne argue that they were not directly responsible for the adverse employment actions suffered by…