[Wikipedia] Barnes v. Felix (SCOTUS decision)

May 15, 2025May 15, 2025
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Barnes v. Felix

Barnes v. Felix
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued January 22, 2025
Decided May 15, 2025
Full case nameJanice Hughes Barnes, Individually and as Representative of the Estate of Ashtian Barnes, Deceased v. Roberto Felix, Jr., et al.
Docket no.23-1239
Citations605 U.S. ____ (more)
ArgumentOral argument
DecisionOpinion
Questions presented
“Whether courts should apply the moment of the threat doctrine when evaluating an excessive force claim under the Fourth Amendment.”

Barnes v. Felix, 605 U.S. ____, is a United States Supreme Court case reaffirming the “totality of the circumstances” test for evaluating excessive force claims under the Fourth Amendment, previously established in Tennessee v. Garner (1985). Writing for a unanimous court, Associate Justice Elena Kagan rejected a “moment of the threat” test, used by some of the Circuit Courts, as excessively narrow within the scope of the Fourth Amendment.

Background

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At 2:45 p.m. CT on April 28, 2016, 24-year-old Black man Ashtian Barnes was driving a rented silver Toyota Corolla on the Sam Houston Tollway in Houston, Texas when he was pulled over by Officer Roberto Felix Jr. of the Harris County Constable Precinct 5 due to a $6.45 USD unpaid toll connected to the car.[1][2][3] He was driving to pick up his girlfriend’s daughter from daycare.[4][5]

When asked, Barnes could not show a driver’s license nor proof of insurance, telling Felix that it may be in the trunk of the car. Barnes turned off the car engine and removed the keys from the ignition. Felix later claimed to have smelled marijuana, which is illegal for recreational use in Texas. No trace of drugs were ever found in the car nor on Barnes.[2] After the shooting, a firearm was recovered from the glove compartment of the car.[2][6]

Felix ordered Barnes to exit the vehicle and pulled out his gun. The car then began to roll forward while the door was open and Felix jumped onto the car while pointing his gun at Barnes and fired two shots, killing Barnes.[6][7] He was hit in the torso and died at the scene.[2] Felix had been a police officer since 2004 and was involved in another fatal shooting in 2007. He was not disciplined for Barnes’ killing.[2]

The Houston Police Department, which is separate from the constable’s office that employed Felix, and the Harris County District Attorney’s Office were charged with investigating Barnes’ killing.[2] On August 31, 2016, a 12-person grand jury declined to bring charges against Felix in the death of Barnes. Later that day, a Black Lives Matter protest attended by Barnes’ mother and father took place outside the Harris County 180th Criminal Court. On that same day, dashcam video of the stop was released.[8]

Barnes’ mother, Janice Hughes Barnes, brought an excessive force claim against Felix on her son’s behalf. The Fifth Circuit dismissed her claim, citing its “moment-of-threat” doctrine.[6][9]

Precedent

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In 1985, the Supreme Court ruled in Tennessee v. Garner that the use of deadly force by police is unconstitutional “unless it is necessary to prevent the escape and the officer has probable cause to believe that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others.”[10] In 1989, the court clarified in Graham v. Connor that when hearing a claim, courts must consider the “totality of the circumstances.”[11][12]

The First, Third, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth, Tenth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuit Courts of Appeal accept and apply the totality doctrine. The Second, Fourth, Fifth, and Eighth Circuits instead apply the “moment-of-threat” doctrine. Texas is within the jurisdiction of the Fifth Circuit. The “moment-of-threat” doctrine evaluates Fourth Amendment violations only within the context of the narrow window when the officer’s safety is allegedly threatened, excluding the events that precede it.[13] As Texas is within the Fifth Circuit, the District Court and Fifth Circuit rejected Barnes’ Fourth Amendment claims by treating the car’s movement as a threat to Felix’s safety, prompting this appeal to the Supreme Court.[1]

Supreme Court

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Oral arguments were heard on January 22, 2025.[2] Barnes was represented at the Supreme Court by attorneys Katherine Booth Wellington and Nathaniel Zelinsky,[1][6] Felix by attorneys Lisa Schiavo Blatt and Judith Ramsey Saldana, and Harris County by attorney Seth Barrett Hopkins.[14]

The Biden Administration‘s Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar filed an amicus brief in the case.[2] Zoe A. Jacoby represented the United States as amicus curiae during oral arguments.[6]

Majority opinion

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The court issued its decision on May 15, 2025.[4] Writing for a unanimous court, Associate Justice Elena Kagan rejected the Fifth Circuit’s “moment-of-threat” doctrine as too narrow.[15] The Supreme Court declined to analyze whether an officer’s creation of a threat to themselves reduces the reasonableness of their force because it was not addressed by the lower courts.[4]

Concurrence

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Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote a concurring opinion joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Amy Coney Barrett.[15] The concurrence cautioned judges to recognize that traffic stops are highly dangerous for police officers and evasion suggests “that the driver is preparing to commit or has committed a more serious crime.”[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Jump up to:a b c Sanders, Robyn Nicole (April 15, 2025). “Is the Supreme Court About to Make Police Violence Much Worse?”. Slate. ISSN 1091-2339. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  2. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h Lawrence Hurley (January 25, 2025). “‘Split-second decision’: Supreme Court returns to the question of police killings”. NBC News. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
  3. ^ Liptak, Adam (January 22, 2025). “Supreme Court Seems Ready to Reject Limit on Excessive-Force Suits Against Police Officers”. The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on January 22, 2025. Retrieved January 24, 2025.
  4. ^ Jump up to:a b c d Liptak, Adam (May 15, 2025). “Supreme Court Rejects ‘Moment of Threat’ Limit in Excessive Force Suits”. The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 15, 2025. Retrieved May 15, 2025.
  5. ^ “US Supreme Court reviewing 2016 case where Harris Co. deputy constable shot and killed motorist”. ABC13 Houston. October 9, 2024. Archived from the original on December 8, 2024. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  6. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e “Barnes v. Felix”. Oyez Project. Retrieved December 7, 2024.
  7. ^ “Barnes v. Felix”. Constitutional Accountability Center. Archived from the original on December 8, 2024. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  8. ^ Barned-Smith, St John (August 31, 2016). “Protesters rally after deputy is cleared in Beltway driver’s death”. Chron. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
  9. ^ “The four US Supreme Court cases to watch”. BBC. Archived from the original on December 8, 2024. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  10. ^ Tennessee v. Garner, 471 U.S. 1 (1985)
  11. ^ Graham v. Connor, 490 U.S. 386 (1989)
  12. ^ Sullum, Jacob (October 7, 2024). “A Texas cop endangered himself by jumping onto a moving car. Then he shot the driver”. Reason. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  13. ^ “23-1239 Barnes v. Felix” (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. October 4, 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 26, 2025. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  14. ^ “No. 23-1239”. Supreme Court of the United States. Archived from the original on January 21, 2025. Retrieved December 30, 2024.
  15. ^ Jump up to:a b “Barnes v. Felix”. SCOTUSblog. Archived from the original on December 8, 2024. Retrieved December 7, 2024.

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