Brower v. County of Inyo
489 U.S. 593 (1989)
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Rule of Law:
A Fourth Amendment seizure occurs when a governmental actor terminates a person's freedom of movement through means intentionally applied. The stop must be the result of the specific instrumentality set in motion or put in place by the government to achieve that result.
Facts:
- William James Caldwell (Brower) stole a car and led police on a 20-mile, high-speed chase.
- To end the chase, police officers placed an 18-wheel tractor-trailer across both lanes of a two-lane highway, creating a roadblock.
- The roadblock was set up behind a curve in the road and was left unilluminated.
- Police positioned a patrol car with its headlights on, facing Brower's approaching vehicle, in a manner that would allegedly blind him.
- Brower's car crashed into the tractor-trailer, and he was killed.
- Brower did not stop voluntarily before striking the roadblock.
Procedural Posture:
- William Brower's heirs (petitioners) sued the police officers (respondents) in Federal District Court under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.
- The complaint alleged that the roadblock constituted an unreasonable seizure in violation of the Fourth Amendment.
- The District Court (trial court) granted the respondents' motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim, ruling that the roadblock was not unreasonable.
- Petitioners appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
- The Ninth Circuit (intermediate appellate court) affirmed the dismissal but on the different ground that no 'seizure' had occurred.
- The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari to resolve a conflict among the circuit courts.
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Issue:
Does a fatal crash resulting from a fleeing suspect's car hitting a police roadblock constitute a 'seizure' within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment?
Opinions:
Majority - Justice Scalia
Yes. A fatal crash resulting from a fleeing suspect's car hitting a police roadblock constitutes a seizure. A Fourth Amendment seizure occurs when there is a governmental termination of an individual's freedom of movement through means intentionally applied. While a suspect's own actions, like losing control of a car during a chase, do not constitute a seizure, a roadblock is different. A roadblock is a physical barrier designed to produce a stop by physical impact if voluntary compliance does not occur. Therefore, when Brower was stopped by the physical obstacle of the roadblock, he was seized because he was stopped by the very instrumentality set in motion by the government to achieve that result. This case is remanded to determine if the seizure was 'unreasonable.'
Concurring - Justice Stevens
Yes. The Court is correct that the use of a roadblock constituted a seizure, but the majority opinion's focus on creating a new test based on 'intentional acquisition of physical control' is unnecessary dicta. The outcome is plainly controlled by the precedent in Tennessee v. Garner, which held that apprehension by the use of deadly force is a seizure. Because the roadblock was a form of deadly force intended to stop Brower, it was a seizure. The well-established rule—that a seizure occurs if a reasonable person would not feel free to leave—is sufficient without introducing a new, and potentially confusing, intent requirement.
Analysis:
This case significantly clarifies the definition of a Fourth Amendment 'seizure' in the context of police pursuits. By establishing the 'means intentionally applied' test, the Court created a crucial distinction between a stop actively caused by police action (a seizure) and a stop that coincidentally occurs during police action (not a seizure). This precedent sets the framework for analyzing liability in cases where high-speed chases end in a crash, focusing on whether the police's specific method, rather than just their pursuit, was the direct cause of the suspect's halt. It distinguishes active measures like roadblocks and PIT maneuvers from passive pursuit.
