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Qualified Immunity

By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//October 31, 2022//

Qualified Immunity

By: WISCONSIN LAW JOURNAL STAFF//October 31, 2022//

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7th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Luis Roldan v. Jason Stroud

Case No.: 21-2722

Officials: Scudder, St. Eve, and Jackson-Akiwumi, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Qualified Immunity

Luis Roldan sued several police officers who investigated him for sexual assault. He alleged that the officers failed to disclose an agreement to help the victim apply for an immigration benefit—a U visa—in exchange for her testimony at his criminal trial. The officers moved to dismiss the complaint based on qualified immunity. The district court denied the motion on grounds that the Supreme Court’s 1972 decision in Giglio v. United States and related cases clearly established the officers’ duty to disclose the agreement.

Immunity is inappropriate at this early stage but for a different reason. Qualified immunity hinges on a fact that Roldan did not flesh out in his complaint: whether the police officers informed the prosecution about the U-visa agreement with the victim. If the police did, they cannot be liable, for the ultimate disclosure obligation would have rested with the prosecutors. The court remands for discovery on whether any prosecutor knew about the agreement.

Affirmed and Remanded

Decided 10/25/22

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