1

Officer Jeff Payne put Alex Wubbels a hospital nurse under arrest even though it was ever so blatant that she had done nothing wrong. Will suing this cop personally be likely to succeed?

I've read online that it can be very difficult to sue officers personally because of investigatorial immunity. However it did also state that if the evidence clearly shows that the officer was acting unlawfully it is possible to win the suit.

In this specific case of the Utah hospital nurse being falsely arrested, is the body cam footage in conjunction with the CCTV and all the witness testimony enough to successfully file a lawsuit against this officer personally?

Improve this question
  • 1
    I'm not sure why you would want to sue the officer personally; it seem like it would be easier to make a case against the city, and they have a lot more money. – Nate Eldredge Sep 2 '17 at 15:27
  • @NateEldredge Because taking the money from the city is just unfair to those whom had nothing to do with this case but more importantly it relieves personal responsibility from the police officer involved. – Rstew Sep 2 '17 at 15:31
  • 1
    @NateEldredge why not sue them both? – phoog Sep 2 '17 at 15:39
  • @Ryan "taking the money from the city is just unfair to those whom had nothing to do with this case..." The city is a government entity which can be held legally responsible for the actions of their employees. – BlueDogRanch Sep 2 '17 at 16:00
  • 2
    As I understand it, the law says a police phlebotomist is permitted to take a blood sample from a hospital patient if, but only if, the patient is under arrest or the officer has a warrant or the patient consents. None of those three things happened. – Michael Hardy Sep 3 '17 at 3:50

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.