Seriously, stop or I’ll shoot: The outcome of a criminal case may have a direct impact on liability in the civil case.

The plaintiff was parked in a vehicle when an unmarked police car pulled up next to him and three police officers in plain clothes approached his vehicle. Allegedly fearing that he was about to be carjacked, the plaintiff put his vehicle into drive and pulled forward, hitting and minimally injuring one officer and causing the other two officers to jump out of the way. The officers opened fire on the vehicle, hitting the plaintiff multiple times in the head and causing blindness and cranial damage. The plaintiff was later found guilty of aggravated assault and reckless endangerment, which led to the defeat of his claims of excessive force against the police officers as his criminal convictions established that he placed the officers at risk of death or serious bodily injury. One critical point to make is the importance of following up to ensure a good outcome to the criminal prosecution, as this case emphasizes that the outcome of the criminal case may have a direct impact on liability in the civil case.

_{Case Law Alerts, 2^nd Quarter, April 2015}

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