BRIAN C. LEE, SR. v. TOWN OF SEABOARD
US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Wynn, July 14, 2017,
Use of Force- An officer is not entitled to summary judgment in a case where there is a dispute regarding whether or not deadly force was reasonable

Facts
In 2010, Officer Twine was working off-duty/secondary security for a party at the Elks Lodge in Seaboard, VA. Sgt. Phillips was on-duty and actively monitored the party by repeatedly visiting over the course of the night.
Brian Lee and friends drove from Norfolk to the party and got into an altercation with others while there. At apx. 0215 Sgt. Phillips and P/o Twine announced that the party was over and escorted Lee to his car.
At this point, stories diverge. According to Lee’s lawsuit, Lee was attacked by a partygoer while at his car but the police did nothing. When the police ordered Lee to leave, he tried to go but partygoers launched themselves onto his car and he panicked. At some point his windshield was smashed in. Lee claimed that he was trying to leave when Sgt. Phillips shot him.
In addition, Sgt. Phillips and P/o Twine had different versions of the shooting. Their stories differed with regard to whether pedestrians were in danger of being struck by Lee’s car when Sgt. Phillips shot Lee. They also differed with regard to Sgt. Phillips’ placement (struck by the car vs. “about three feet” from the car) when Sgt. Phillips shot Lee. Whereas Sgt. Phillips stated that he rolled away after being struck by the car, Officer Twine testified that Sergeant Phillips did not fall to the ground until at least thirty seconds after he fired.
Lee sued Sgt. Phillips and the Town of Seaboard. Sgt. Phillips and the town claimed immunity because the use of force was reasonable under the circumstances.
The trial judge granted Sgt. Phillips and the town summary judgment because of the justified use of force.
Lee appealed, arguing that there was a genuine dispute regarding whether or not the use of force was justified.
Law from the Case
Held: The Fourth Circuit agreed. Under the facts, it was not clear whether Sgt. Phillips was justified in using deadly force. Because there was a legitimate dispute, the case was sent back for trial.
Summary Judgment – A motion for summary judgment is a way to avoid a full trial when both sides agree on the facts (or, even if the facts were as the plaintiff claims, the defendant would still win).