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Brown v. City of Hazlehurst6/22/1999
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 10/03/1997
TRIAL JUDGE: HON. LAMAR PICKARD COURT FROM WHICH APPEALED: COPIAH COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
NATURE OF THE CASE: CIVIL - PERSONAL INJURY
TRIAL COURT DISPOSITION: SUMMARY JUDGMENT GRANTED IN FAVOR OF THE APPELLEES
DISPOSITION: AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED AND REMANDED IN PART - 06/22/990
. Albert Brown and his son, Alvin Brown, brought suit against the City of Hazlehurst, its mayor, board of aldermen, police chief, and a police officer, alleging they were arrested without probable cause in violation of their Fourth Amendment rights. Other claims involved the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments and state law torts of false arrest and malicious prosecution. The Copiah County Circuit Court entered summary judgment in favor of all defendants.
. We affirm most of the judgment. We find disputes of material fact to exist as to the claims against the police chief and the officer in their individual capacities and reverse that portion only.
FACTS
. On May 27, 1992, teenager Lakeith Brown attended a graduation party held at Stewart's Club in Hazlehurst. At around 11:00 or 11:30 p.m. the party began to break up and several teenagers, including Brown, stood outside the club waiting for rides. They were laughing and singing, prompting Hazlehurst Police Officer James Mitchell to instruct the group to quiet down. After someone from the group responded to Mitchell, he grabbed Lakeith Brown by the neck and arrested him. When they arrived at the police station, Mitchell instructed Brown to call his parents so that they might come get him and take him home. Brown was not charged with any crime.
. When Lakeith Brown's mother, Geneva Brown, arrived at the police station, she asked for an explanation for her son's arrest. The officers on duty informed her that she would have to see Officer Mitchell, who had gone home for the evening. Geneva Brown, Lakeith, and several other teenagers drove to Officer Mitchell's home. It is at this point where the parties' accounts of events diverge. According to Officer Mitchell, Mrs. Brown created a disturbance, used profanity, and threatened him by saying that she would return in the morning because "nobody messes with my children." However, Mrs. Brown claims that she calmly asked Officer Mitchell why he had arrested her son. He refused to answer, so Mrs. Brown told the officer "that he has children my son's age, and he wouldn't like anyone to do his child like that." At that point, Mrs. Brown alleges, Mitchell asked her if she was threatening him. She denied doing so. Both parties agree that Officer Mitchell then instructed Mrs. Brown to leave.
. When Mrs. Brown and her party left, Officer Mitchell followed them and radioed for assistance. Mrs. Brown stopped at her sister's house along the way. When she arrived at home, Officer Mitchell and two other Hazlehurst police officers were waiting. Mrs. Brown, Lakeith Brown, and appellant Alvin Brown claim that there were fifteen officers stationed outside the home, while Albert Brown agrees that there were "ten or more." The officers later stated that they attempted to place Mrs. Brown, Alvin Brown, and two other teenagers under arrest for disturbing the peace and disorderly conduct. Mrs. Brown resisted arrest. The others, including Alvin Brown, told the officers that they would have to fight them in order to arrest them. Alvin Brown disputes this account, and claims that he was merely sitting in his yard talking with a friend when his mother arrived followed by fifteen police officers. He was then placed under arrest for no apparent reason.
. According to the police officers on the sc
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