Supreme Court Opts to Not Review Case Against Dallas Officers, Civil Rights Case Can Proceed Without Qualified Immunity
A federal appeals court ruled in January that "qualified immunity" should not protect the officers from potential liability resulting from the death of Timpa, a man with mental illness who died after being restrained for nearly 14 minutes by the officers.
The Supreme Court of the United States said Tuesday it would not review the case against four Dallas police officers involved in the death of Tony Timpa in 2016. A federal appeals court ruled in January that "qualified immunity" should not protect the officers from potential liability resulting from the death of Timpa, a man with mental illness who died after being restrained for nearly 14 minutes by the officers.
To keep the case from going to trial the City of Dallas fought all the way to the Supreme Court and on Tuesday the court refused to weigh in, which means the case will go forward to trial, reports 5NBC.
"The decision means that the case can proceed to trial and that there will be no more delays from any appellate court. Also, the decision means that the Fifth Circuit did it right that their ruling regarding deadly force will be the law of the land at least in Mississippi, Texas and Louisiana for as long as we know," Geoff Henley, an attorney for Timpa’s family, tells FOX4.
The states mentioned by Henley are covered by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling allowing the suit to continue.
A Dallas County grand jury indicted the three officers on misdemeanor charges of deadly conduct, but those charges were dropped by the district attorney in 2019.
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