JOHN K. HARDEN v. KEITH HILLMAN, Individually and in his Official Capacity as a Police Officer of Heritage Creek, Kentucky; CITY OF HERITAGE CREEK, KENTUCKY - Articles

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JOHN K. HARDEN v. KEITH HILLMAN, Individually and in his Official Capacity as a Police Officer of Heritage Creek, Kentucky; CITY OF HERITAGE CREEK, KENTUCKY

Posted by: Tanja Trezise on Apr 6, 2021

Head Comment: SUHRHEINRICH delivered a separate opinion concurring in part and dissenting in part.

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ARGUED and ON BRIEF: Aubrey Williams, Louisville, Kentucky, for Appellant.

Attorneys 2: ARGUED and ON BRIEF: Mark A. Osbourn, BUSH & OSBOURN, PLLC, Louisville, Kentucky, for Appellees.

Judge(s): SUHRHEINRICH, CLAY, and DONALD, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky at Louisville

CLAY, Circuit Judge. In this action, Plaintiff John Harden, an African American man, asserted a number of claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Officer Keith Hillman, the City of Heritage Creek, and Thorntons, Inc., alleging violations of his constitutional rights, as well as claims under Kentucky law. Harden’s claims arose out of his arrest and prosecution following an incident at a Thorntons convenience store in Louisville, Kentucky. Besides Harden’s excessive force claim against Hillman, all of his claims were dismissed prior to trial. Following a trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of Hillman on the excessive force claim.

For the reasons set forth in this opinion, we AFFIRM the district court’s grant of summary judgment to Hillman on Harden’s claim that he was arrested without probable cause, AFFIRM the district court’s order denying Harden’s first Motion for New Trial, VACATE the district court’s order denying Harden’s second Motion for New Trial, and REMAND the case to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

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