Susan Davenport, et al. v. City of Little Rock, et al.

Little Rock, Arkansas personal injury lawyers represented the Plaintiffs on a civil rights violation claim.



On September 1, 2016, law enforcement officers conducted narcotics raids1

at a home and shop located on the same piece of property in Pulaski County,

Arkansas. Officers found contraband in both locations, and, during the raid of the

shop, an officer shot and injured a man named Lloyd St. Clair.



Officers investigating drug activity came to suspect that contraband would be

found at a home and shop located on King Road. After obtaining no-knock search

warrants4 from a state judge, officers executed them on the morning of September

1. The officers divided into two teams to search the home and shop simultaneously.

At the time of the searches, Susan and Chris Davenport were inside the home, and

Floyd and Lloyd St. Clair were inside the shop.



At the home, officers deployed distraction devices upon entry. After a search,

they recovered a small amount of marijuana from the home.



At the shop, Officer Matthew Thomas was the first to enter and, after scanning

the room, he deployed a distraction device. Thomas then saw Floyd sitting at a desk

and ordered him to put his hands up; Floyd complied. Thomas moved further into

the shop and saw a man holding a shotgun in a separate room. Believing that the

man—Lloyd—was pointing the gun at him, Thomas shot Lloyd several times. A

medic treated Lloyd's injuries while the officers completed the search, and Lloyd

was later taken to a hospital. The officers found drugs and drug paraphernalia at the

shop.5



State charges were filed against Lloyd, Floyd, and Chris based on the

recovered evidence. Lloyd and Floyd pleaded guilty to various charges,6 and both

were sentenced to probation and a fine.



Lloyd, Floyd, Chris, and Susan later brought this § 1983 suit. The complaint

alleged a Fourth Amendment unlawful search claim against Little Rock police

department (LRPD) narcotics officers Amber Kalmer and Russ Littleton; an

unlawful entry claim against LRPD SWAT officers Jason Follett, Timothy Calhoun,

and Matthew Thomas, as well as Kalmer and Littleton (collectively, officer

defendants); an excessive force claim against Thomas; and a Monell claim against

the City of Little Rock, Arkansas and then-Police Chief of the LRPD Kenton

uckner, in his official capacity.

Motion for summary judgment granted.



Affirmed