Jones v. Wang

Plaintiffs filed suit under 42 U.S.C. 1983 alleging that defendant violated their Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights and committed various torts during her investigation into whether G.J. had been abused. On appeal, defendant challenged the district court's denial of her motion for summary judgment based on qualified immunity. The court concluded that plaintiffs' account of the evidence supports a claim that defendant seized G.J., and did so despite the absence of exigent circumstances; case law provided fair warning to defendant that detaining G.J. would violate the Constitution; and therefore, plaintiffs are entitled to attempt to prove their version of the facts to a jury and summary judgment was not appropriate. Finally, the court agreed with the district court that defendant is not entitled as a matter of law to the reporter's privilege under section 11172(a) of the California Penal Code or discretionary immunity under section 820.2 of the California Government Code. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment. View "Jones v. Wang" on Justia Law