The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday (March 25) in two cases that will make it easier to sue large companies for manufacturing problems in their cars by making the cases available locally, rather than in the places where they are made and sold, and by making it easier to hold police officers accountable for excessive enforcement.
In the first case, the justices ruled unanimously that Ford Motor Co. could be sued for alleged manufacturing defects in two crashes that occurred in Montana and Michigan. The Family of a Montana woman who died in a crash in which she was driving a 1996 Ford Explorer said the accident was caused by a design defect. Another case was brought by a man who said the Ford Crown Victoria he was driving was defective, causing his injuries in the crash.
Ford said the cars at fault can only be sued in the states where they were designed, manufactured or sold. And the two cars in question were sold in other states.
But the court ruled that because Ford sells its products nationwide, the state court could consider a lawsuit against the company. Judge Elena Kagan said Ford is incorporated in Delaware and based in Michigan, but its operations are everywhere.
In the second case, the judge ruled 5-3 that the officer could be prosecuted for excessive law enforcement, even though the officer did not catch the suspect. The case involved a New Mexico woman, Roxanne Torres, who fled a parking lot in her car when officers approached to question her. At the Time, she thought she might be a carjacker, but instead it was the police, who shot her 13 times, twice in the back. She sued the police for unconstitutional shooting and unreasonable seizure under the Fourth Amendment.
Police argued that no seizure occurred because she was not apprehended. But the court ruled Thursday that the seizure was nevertheless a seizure. Chief Justice John Ross wrote that the law has long held that the use of force is intended to capture and seize, even if it is unsuccessful. He stressed, however, that “this decision does not interpret every physical contact between a government employee and a member of the public as a seizure.” Nor does the ruling mention the use of other forms of weapons by police, such as pepper spray, flashbangs or radium, he said.
Jeffrey Bellin, a professor at William & Mary Law School, said Thursday’s ruling will make it easier to prosecute police overreach at a time when the country is increasingly concerned about police violence.
“The ruling that a ‘seizure’ occurred in this case means that more cases of police shootings and other unconstitutional force enforcement can be found in the future.”
New Justice Amy Coney Barrett did not participate in Thursday’s ruling because she came to office before both cases were argued in October.
Recent Comments