4th 334, 54 Cal. 1994) - ". Before CUMMINGS and COFFEY, Circuit Judges, and ZAGEL, District Judge.*. See, e.g., John Barry & Tom Morganthau, Soon, 'Phasers on Stun', NEWSWEEK, Feb. 7, 1994, at 24-26. It is a self-defense case where the officer has "probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer" and, therefore, the officer may use deadly force. Indeed, Plakas merely states this theory, he does not argue it. In this record, there is expert opinion that Drinski might have been better trained to negotiate with Plakas and that he may have said one thing to Plakas that he ought not to have said, i.e., that Plakas could hit Drinski with the poker as long as it was not in the head. They noticed that his clothes were wet. Tom, 963 F.2d at 962. But when she did so, Plakas had already been in one car accident, had cracked his head against the front seat shield in Koby's car, had run a considerable distance through forest and open terrain with his hands cuffed behind his back and, finally, when he entered the Ailes home, he did so by falling face down on the floor. Perhaps we ought not to consider this theory since it was not pled, but it is of no use to Plakas in any event. Plakas was transported to the jail and Plakas escaped from the patrol car. Morton v. Kirkwood, 707 F.3d 1276, 1281 (11th Cir. 4. Plakas's administrator claimed that the self-defense story was full of holes and that, even if it were not, Drinski and the county which employed him had a constitutional obligation to do more to preserve his life than they did. Konstantino Plakas was shot once and killed by Jeffrey Drinski, a deputy sheriff. The moon was bright, light was reflecting off the snow and it was easy to track Plakas who slowed as he entered a row of thick brush hedges. In Ford v. Childers, 855 F.2d 1271 (7th Cir. Drinski and Perras had entered the house from the garage and saw Plakas leave. Leaving aside the absence of evidence of facial injuries from medical records or post-mortem observation, we accept that Mrs. Ailes saw these injuries. et al Filing 89 MEMORANDUM Opinion Signed by the Honorable John F. Grady on 12/29/2011. Plakas v. Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143, 1146 (7th Cir. He also told Plakas to drop the weapon and get down on the ground. At times Plakas moved the poker about; at times it rested against the ground. Cain left. Yet there exists a possibility that although Drinski's acts were justified given his circumstances, Newton County may be held liable for creating those circumstances. Tom v. Voida did not, and did not mean to, announce a new doctrine. 1985) (en banc). But it is trouble which the police officer is sworn to cause, which society pays him to cause and which, if kept within constitutional limits, society praises the officer for causing. Sergeant Buddy R. King, of the Newton County Sheriff's Department thought the car had rolled over on its top and slid for 150 to 200 feet before rolling upright, striking a tree and coming to rest in the ditch. Cain saw Plakas push his legs through the circle of his arms, bringing his cuffed hands to the front of his body. Roy stayed outside to direct other police to his house. H91-365. Since Drinski did not violate Plakas's rights, there usually is no basis for holding his employer, Newton County, liable. Perras said that he did not use the CS repellant because he was too far from Plakas and because it might have landed on his fellow officers. Plakas opened his shirt to show the scars to Drinski. Abstract. It is significant he never yelled about a beating. There they noticed Plakas was intoxicated. Drinski blocked the opening in the brush where all had entered the clearing. He hit the brakes and heard Plakas hit the screen between the front and rear seats. Cain left. For the next quarter-hour or half-hour, Drinski and Perras tried to talk Plakas into surrendering. 1988) (en banc), police officers shot and wounded a masked bank robber fleeing from the scene of his crime. * The Honorable James B. Zagel, District Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, is sitting by designation. A volunteer fireman found him walking . Cain thought Plakas was out to kill him, Perras said that he did not use the CS repellant because he was too far from Plakas and because it might have landed on his fellow officers. All of this means Drinski was properly standing in the clearing, gun in hand, several feet away from Plakas, who charged him with the poker raised. Second, Drinski said he was stopped in his retreat by a tree. This does not help Plakas's case because, by the time the paramedic arrived, Plakas's body had been moved, rolled over by Drinski and Perras.3 Plakas himself may have also moved; the dying man kicked over the paramedic's medical case. She chased him and, when she caught him, he attacked her, banging her head into a concrete surface. Joyce and Rachel helped him. Seventh Circuit. Salas v. Carpenter, 980 F.2d 299, 310 (5th Cir. Plakas died sometime after he arrived at the hospital. The time-frame is a crucial aspect of excessive force cases. Joyce saw no blood, but saw bumps on his head and bruises. 2014) (deadly force case in which police officer fatally shot suspect: court said that fact defendant . Reconsideration will nearly always reveal that something different could have been done if the officer knew the future before it occurred. Dickerson, 101 F.3d at 1161 (quoting Plakas v. Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143, 1150 (7th Cir. The clearing was small, but Plakas and the officers were ten feet apart. Roy told him that he should not run from the police. He told Koby that this hurt him because he had burn scars on his chest and thought that if he got in the car, his chest would start to bleed. Filing 82. United States District Court, N.D. Indiana, Hammond Division. As he did so, Plakas slowly backed down a hill in the yard. The officers told Plakas to drop the poker. Id. Find a Lawyer. Cain told Corporal Koby to check Plakas for intoxication and he told Koby why. Plakas agreed that Roy should talk to the police. Through an opening in the brush was a clearing. 1992). Id. The only test is whether what the police officers actually did was reasonable. 1988) (en banc), police officers shot and wounded a masked bank robber fleeing from the scene of his crime. This conclusion accords comfortably with the opinion of Judge Zagel in Plakas v. Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143, 1148-50 (7th Cir. Heres how to get more nuanced and relevant This theory is founded on the fact that Plakas told Koby, "You hurt me," and on Joyce Ailes's observation that Plakas had facial injuries. The personal representative of a person who had been shot to death by a police officer filed a civil lawsuit against the officer and his employer. We do not return to the prior segments of the event and, in light of hindsight, reconsider whether the prior police decisions were correct. 1989). He moved toward her. Plakas did agree to go to the Sheriff's Department to be tested for intoxication. Cain knew there was an ambulance at that site and that Plakas could be examined more carefully there. In the case of Plakas v. Drinski, the Federal district court in Indiana decided the use of a less lethal alternative was not required when the use of deadly force by police was justified. Tom, 963 F.2d at 962. Graham, 490 U.S. at 396-97, 109 S. Ct. at 1872; see also Sherrod v. Berry, 856 F.2d 802, 806-07 (7th Cir. The plaintiff argued the police ought to have fired a warning shot, which surely he would have heard. Jo Ann PLAKAS, Individually and as Administrator of the Estate of Konstantino N. Plakas, Deceased, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Jeffrey DRINSKI, in both his individual and official capacity and Newton County, Indiana, a municipal unit of government, Defendants-Appellees. It is true we consider the whole of the event as it appears to the officer involved, but we recognize that the decision to shoot can only be made after the briefest reflection, so brief that "reflection" is the wrong word. In affirming summary judgment for the officer, we said. He can claim self-defense to shooting Plakas. The only witnesses to the shooting were three police officers, Drinski and two others. It is from this point on that we judge the reasonableness of the use of deadly force . Then gripping it with both hands, he continued screaming, louder and louder at Cain and Koby. Roy Ailes spoke to Plakas, smelled alcohol on his breath, and found him to be upset and insistent that he did nothing wrong. He picked one of them up, a 2-3 foot poker with a hook on its end. The only argument in this case is that Plakas did not charge at all. This appeal followed. He saw Plakas cock the poker over his head for a swing and, when Plakas was two arms lengths away, he fired once at Plakas' chest. Drinski was faced with a man who had, minutes before, attacked a police officer with a dangerous weapon, had refused several entreaties to disarm, had told the officer that one of the two would die that night, and then had moved toward the officer while raising his weapon to strike. No. We said, "The officers' split second decision to use their weapons, after twice warning the suspect, was objectively reasonable under the circumstances. Plakas v. Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143 (7th Cir. As Plakas moved toward Drinski, was he supposed to think of an attack dog, of Perras's CS gas, of how fast he could run backwards? This is not a case where an officer claims to have used deadly force to prevent an escape. Moreover, when Plakas did say anything at all about Koby, it was a complaint about cuffing him behind his back, which he said (without medical corroboration even now) caused pain because of his scar tissue. Plakas v. Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143 (7th Cir. The tree-sapling discrepancy is of the sort on which popular conspiracy theories are built, but it is not enough to allow a rational trier of fact to decide against Drinski. Voida could not have subdued Tom through lesser means, as she did not have her nightstick with her and she feared that reaching for her chemical repellant would expose her weapon to Tom's grasp. right of "armed robbery. The only test is whether what the police . Plakas, however, merely mentions this testimony to show that Drinski was badly trained. In her response to Drinski's Motion for Summary Judgment, Plaintiff argues that the Indiana Dead Man's Statute, Ind. Illinois. Then the rear door flew open, and Plakas fled into snow-covered woods. He also said, in substance, "Go ahead and shoot. Even if Plakas attacked Drinski and Drinski acted in self-defense, Plakas was still wronged because Drinski had a duty to use alternative methods short of deadly force to resolve the situation before him. Plakas opened his shirt to show the scars to Drinski. At times Plakas moved the poker about; at times it rested against the ground. 1994). Cain smelled alcohol on Plakas's breath and Plakas dozed off as they rode to the place where the car had gone off the road. Finally he rushed at Koby and swung quite hard at Koby, striking Koby's wrist with the poker. We always Judge a decision made, as Drinski's was, in an instant or two. Plakas backed into a corner and neared a set of fireplace tools. He appeared to be blacking out. The answer is no. In this sense, the police officer always causes the trouble. Actually, the photograph is not included in the record here. He fell on his face inside the doorway, his hands still cuffed behind his back. Plakas brings up a few bits of evidence to do so. Konstantino Plakas was shot once and killed by Jeffrey Drinski, a deputy sheriff. But it is trouble which the police officer is sworn to cause, which society pays him to cause and which, if kept within constitutional limits, society praises the officer for causing." Dickerson, 101 F.3d at 1161 (quoting Plakas v. Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143, 1150 (7th Cir.1994)). Perhaps we ought not to consider this theory since it was not pled, but it is of no use to Plakas in any event. The details matter here, so we recite them. It is significant he never yelled about a beating. It is true we consider the whole of the event as it appears to the officer involved, but we recognize that the decision to shoot can only be made after the briefest reflection, so brief that "reflection" is the wrong word. Signed by District Judge R. Stan Baker on 01/06/2023. Again, he struck her. 1992), a case of tragic dimension where an officer stopped to help a fallen man and eventually, as two courts held, had to kill that man in defense of her own life. Perras and Drinski entered the clearing. 7. Dockets.Justia.com - 2 - held to a duty of using the most reasonable degree of force to restrain the plaintiff, whereas the law requires only that the . Deputy Drinski passed by the injured Koby and asked him with what he was hit; Koby told him that Plakas had a poker. His theme was that there were people, including his girlfriend at the house, who cared about Plakas and that nobody needs to get hurt. They could have used disabling chemical spray, or they could have used a dog to disarm Plakas. The proposition that an officer who beats John Doe may not use self-defense to justify killing Doe, who later attacks him, rests on the idea that because the officer's wrongful acts caused the attack, he cannot take advantage of his fear of retaliation to defend against liability. Subscribe to Justia's Free Summaries of Seventh Circuit opinions. Cain knew there was an ambulance at that site and that Plakas could be examined more carefully there. The officers who confronted Plakas were not the officers who injured him and should be able to claim self-defense. It is unusual to hear a lawyer argue that the police ought to have caused a dog to attack his client, but he is right that such an attack might have led to a better result for his client (and would, in our view, have led to a different sort of lawsuit). 2d 1 (1985). (Notes) Sherrod v. Id. Hyde v. Bowman et al Filing 82 ORDER ADOPTING the 78 REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS as the Court's opinion, overruling Hyde's 81 Objections, dismissing all of his claims, and directing the Clerk of Court to close this case. But it is trouble which the police officer is sworn to cause, which society pays him to cause and which, if kept within constitutional limits, society praises the officer for causing. It is obvious that we said Voida thought she had no alternatives. See Reed v. Hoy, 909 F.2d 324, 330-31 (9th Cir. Voida was justified in concluding that Tom could not have been subdued except through gunfire. In Tom v. Voida we were not addressing Officer Voida's decision to shoot; we were addressing her decision to draw her firearm and, even there, we spoke of a decision process that was quick and simple. Subscribe to Justia's Free Summaries of Eleventh Circuit opinions. He hit the brakes and heard Plakas hit the screen between the front and rear seats. Inside the house, Plakas took the poker, slammed it into the wall1 and then beat his head against the wall. Bankruptcy Lawyers; Business Lawyers . 1356. Finally, there is the argument most strongly urged by Plakas. Plakas v. Drinski, supra, 19 F.3d at 1148; Myers v. Oklahoma County Board, supra, 151 F.3d at 1318-19. Plakas argues there is enough evidence to cast doubt on the defendants' self-defense claim, given the low threshold that courts have set for refuting self-defense in deadly force cases both civil and criminal. Roy Ailes, who had just returned to his house, saw the officers with guns drawn and ran forward saying, "Don't shoot, I'll talk to him." From a house Plakas grabbed a fire poker and threaten the . Even if there were no other witness, there is virtually nothing in this record to impeach Drinski. Cain approached Plakas and saw that Plakas's clothing was wet from the waist down. Inside the house, Plakas took the poker, slammed it into the wall [1] and then beat his head against the wall. Having driven Koby and Cain from the house, Plakas walked out of the front door. Appx. Cain approached Plakas and saw that Plakas's clothing was wet from the waist down. The officers who confronted Plakas were not the officers who injured him and should be able to claim self-defense. See Gilmere v. City of Atlanta, 774 F.2d 1495, 1501 (11th Cir. Cited 201 times, 855 F.2d 1256 (1988) | Circuit Rule 28(d); Branion v. Gramly, 855 F.2d 1256, 1260-61 (7th Cir. Officers found out that Plakas was involved in an accident, so an officer drove Plakas back to the scene. So we carve up the incident into segments and judge each on its own terms to see if the officer was reasonable at each stage. He stopped, then lunged again; she fired into his chest. 1977). 5. While Cain and the others tried to explain that Cain was from the fire department and wanted only to give medical aid, Plakas was loud and combative; (Joyce Ailes said he was "hysterical"). Then, when he thought his retreat would not be successful, he was justified in concluding that Plakas could not be subdued at that moment except through gunfire. All of this means Drinski was properly standing in the clearing, gun in hand, several feet away from Plakas, who charged him with the poker raised. As Plakas moved toward Drinski, was he supposed to think of an attack dog, of Perras's CS gas, of how fast he could run backwards? The police gave chase, shouting, "Stop, Police." There is no contention that this "invitation" immediately preceded the shooting or caused Plakas to charge Drinski. We always judge a decision made, as Drinski's was, in an instant or two. Drinski and Perras had entered the house from the garage and saw Plakas leave. The answer is no. We believe the defendant misunderstands the holding in Plakas. The officers told Plakas to drop the poker. 2. Author: Martin A. Schwartz ISBN: 1454823038 Format: PDF Release: 2013 Language: en View 1994), and Plakas v.Drinski, 19 F.3d 1143 (7th Cir. Perras only saw that Drinski stumbled in his retreat either because he backed into something or simply tripped. After a brief interval, Koby got in the car and drove away. Justia. 2d 1116 (1976). Filing 920070312 Roy tried to talk Plakas into surrendering. We do not think it is wise policy to permit every jury in these cases to hear expert testimony that an arrestee would have been uninjured if only the police had been able to use disabling gas or a capture net or a taser (or even a larger number of police officers) and then decide that a municipality is liable because it failed to buy this equipment (or increase its police force). 1983 against Drinski and Newton County to recover damages in connection with her son's death. 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