Police Misconduct Lawyers
The Bakersfield police misconduct lawyers at Chain | Cohn | Clark represent people who have been injured by excessive force, falsely arrested, or have otherwise had their civil rights violated by law enforcement in Kern County, as well as families who have lost a loved one after a police encounter.
Police misconduct claims against a city or county in California generally have a six-month filing deadline for the state-law portion of the case, so seeking legal advice as soon as possible is critical. Chain | Cohn | Clark can explain the legal avenues available to you and determine which deadlines may apply to your case.
Police Misconduct Claims in California
Federal law allows a lawsuit against a state or local officer who, while acting under government authority, violates a right protected by the U.S. Constitution. Excessive force, false arrest, and unlawful searches are the most common grounds, all of which fall under the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.
California’s Tom Bane Civil Rights Act allows a lawsuit when someone interferes with constitutional or statutory rights through threats, intimidation, or coercion. In 2021, SB 2 removed several state-law immunities that officers and their agencies had previously been able to raise against Bane Act claims.
An officer’s conduct can also support claims for battery, false arrest or false imprisonment, and negligence. Sexual assault by an officer during a stop or in custody can support both civil rights and tort claims. Survivors may also find our firm’s overview of civil justice for crime victims useful.
When a person dies after a police encounter, certain family members may be able to bring a wrongful death claim. The person’s estate may also be able to pursue claims the person could have brought had they survived. Chain | Cohn | Clark’s Bakersfield wrongful death lawyers handle these cases alongside the civil rights claims.
How Courts Evaluate Excessive Force Claims
Force is measured against what a reasonable officer would have done in the same situation. Under the standard that the U.S. Supreme Court applies to these claims, the question is whether the force was objectively reasonable given the totality of the circumstances. The officer’s intentions are not part of this analysis.
Courts commonly weigh the severity of the suspected crime, whether the person posed an immediate threat to the officer or to others, and whether the person was actively resisting arrest or attempting to flee. No single factor is decisive; courts consider everything the officer knew at the time.
Because the standard depends so heavily on the circumstances in which the event occurred, the facts of the encounter are of the utmost importance to the case. Video footage, witness accounts, and medical evidence are key to establishing what the officer actually faced, which may differ from the account given in a police report. An experienced attorney can help you gather and organize these things.
Who Can Be Held Responsible for Police Misconduct
The officer can be named individually. Whether the employing agency can also be held responsible depends on which claim is brought. In Bakersfield, that agency is usually the City of Bakersfield for the Bakersfield Police Department or the County of Kern for the Kern County Sheriff’s Office.
Under federal civil rights law, a city or county is not automatically liable for its officers’ conduct. However, the agency can be held responsible when the violation resulted from its own policy, an established custom, or a failure to train or supervise officers. California law reaches further for state claims: a public entity is generally liable for injuries caused by its employees acting within the scope of their employment.
Qualified immunity is a federal defense that can shield an individual officer from damages on federal civil rights claims unless the officer violated a clearly established right. It does not apply to claims brought under California law, so state claims are often brought alongside federal ones.
Filing Deadlines for Police Misconduct Claims
Claims against a city or county have two separate timelines. For state-law claims, including Bane Act, battery, negligence, and wrongful death claims, a government claim generally must be presented to the public entity within six months of the incident. If the claim is rejected, a lawsuit generally must then be filed within six months of the written notice of rejection.
Federal civil rights claims do not require a government claim and are subject to a two-year statute of limitations in California. Because the six-month state deadline arrives first, waiting until the federal deadline approaches can mean losing the state claims entirely. Our firm’s guide to the steps of a lawsuit explains what typically happens once a case is filed.
$22.1
million
Pedestrian Accident
$15
million
Products Liability Explosion
$11
million
Premises Liability
$10
million
Oilfield Accident
$10
million
Motorcycle Accident
$9
million
Industrial Accident
$8.8
million
Police Misconduct
$8
million
Pedestrian Accident
Evidence in a Police Misconduct Case
Much of the evidence in these cases is in the possession of the agency being sued, and some of it can be lost or overwritten if it is not requested promptly. An attorney can do this on your behalf.
- Video footage. Body camera, dash camera, and surveillance footage from nearby businesses are key forms of evidence that can often clearly show what happened. Bystander video recorded on a cell phone is also important and should be preserved in its original form if possible.
- Medical records and photographs. Records from emergency and follow-up care should closely document any injuries and their subsequent treatment.
- Witness information. Names and contact information for anyone who saw the encounter are easiest to collect in the days immediately after an event occurs.
- Police personnel records. Under SB 1421 and SB 16, certain records are now available to the public, including sustained findings that an officer used excessive force, failed to intervene against another officer’s excessive force, or made an unlawful arrest or search. These records can show whether an officer or department had a history of similar conduct.
Police Misconduct in Bakersfield and Kern County
Law enforcement in Kern County has drawn statewide and national scrutiny for its use of force. A 2015 investigation by The Guardian found that police in Kern County killed more people per capita that year than in any other county in the United States.
In 2016, the California Attorney General opened civil rights investigations into both the Bakersfield Police Department and the Kern County Sheriff’s Office. Each ended in a stipulated judgment requiring reforms: the Sheriff’s Office in December 2020 and the Bakersfield Police Department in August 2021. In announcing the Bakersfield judgment, the Attorney General stated that the department’s practices had resulted in unreasonable force, as well as unreasonable stops, searches, and arrests.
Chain | Cohn | Clark represented the family of David Sal Silva, who died in May 2013 after an encounter with Kern County sheriff’s deputies and California Highway Patrol officers near Kern Medical Center. The family’s federal civil rights lawsuit against Kern County settled in 2016 for $3.4 million.
Frequently Asked Questions About Police Misconduct Claims
Yes. A person injured by excessive force can bring claims against the officer and, in many cases, the city or county that employs the officer. Those claims may be brought under federal civil rights law, California’s Bane Act, and state tort law such as battery. Whether the force was excessive depends on whether it was objectively reasonable under the circumstances the officer faced.
For claims under California law, a government claim generally must be filed with the city or county within six months of the incident. Federal civil rights claims are subject to a two-year statute of limitations in California and do not require a government claim. Either way, it is best to speak with an attorney as soon as possible to understand which deadline applies to your case.
Only in part. Qualified immunity can shield an individual officer from damages on federal civil rights claims unless the officer violated a clearly established right. It does not apply to claims brought under California law, such as Bane Act, battery, or negligence claims, so those claims remain available even where qualified immunity applies.
Potentially, yes. Certain family members, such as a spouse or children, and in some circumstances parents, may bring a wrongful death claim. The person’s estate or successor in interest may also pursue the civil rights claims the person could have brought. The six-month government claim deadline applies to the state-law claims, so families should seek legal advice promptly.
Speak to a Police Misconduct Lawyer at Chain | Cohn | Clark
Chain | Cohn | Clark has represented injured people in Bakersfield since 1934. Our firm’s attorneys work regularly with the local agencies, courts, and government claim procedures that are typically involved in police misconduct cases.
Contact Chain | Cohn | Clark today for a free consultation with a Bakersfield police misconduct lawyer.
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