Meggs

Meggs v. City of Berkeley

Good Law
246 F. App'x 402
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth CircuitApril 25, 2007No. 05-15436California353 words

Opinion

Lead Opinion

MEMORANDUM **

Viewing the facts in the light most favorable to Salsbury, no reasonable jury could conclude that his arrest was unsupported by probable cause. Presented with the totality of circumstances known to the arresting officers, a prudent person would conclude that there was a “fair probability,” United States v. Lopez, 482 F.3d 1067, 1072 (9th Cir.2007), Salsbury had committed the crime invoked at the time of his arrest—incitement to riot under California Penal Code § 404.6. Further, the evidence *403 indisputably demonstrates probable cause to believe Salsbury committed several other crimes. Therefore the arrest was lawful. See Devenpeck v. Alford, 543 U.S. 146, 152-53 , 125 S.Ct. 588 , 160 L.Ed.2d 537 (2004).

The use of force to repel Meggs and Salsbury from the skirmish line is properly analyzed under the Fourteenth Amendment guarantee of substantive due process and not under the Fourth Amendment because it did not occur “in the course of an arrest, investigatory stop, or other seizure.” Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386, 395 , 109 S.Ct. 1865 , 104 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989) (internal quotation marks omitted). Given the circumstances, no reasonable juror could find that the…

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