In 2017, a police officer with the City of Huntington Beach (“Officer Esparza”) saw a man standing on a sidewalk who caught his attention (“Mr. Tabares”). Officer Esparza noticed Mr. Tabares wore a sweater on a warm day, walked abnormally, made flinching movements with his hands, and looked in his direction several times. A former
Governor Newsom Signs Police Use-of-Force Bill AB 392
On Monday morning, August 19, 2019, Governor Newsom signed California Assembly Bill 392, a police use-of-force bill that redefines the circumstances under which the use of lethal force by a peace officer is considered justifiable. The law is intended to encourage law enforcement to increasingly rely on alternative methods such as less-lethal force or de-escalation
Ninth Circuit Clarifies Analysis of Reasonableness of Use of Force by Police
Law enforcement agencies’ policies, in accordance with U.S. Supreme Court precedent, uniformly require that force used by officers be objectively reasonable under the circumstances. When considering disciplining an officer for violating a use of force policy, it is therefore critical to understand what the courts consider unreasonable. This is a nuanced and fact-intensive analysis. The