QuickTake:

A judge denied a claim of qualified immunity, finding that a “reasonable officer” would know that using “substantial force for a nonviolent misdemeanor” is unlawful.

A judge ruled an excessive force lawsuit may move forward after a University of Oregon student was “tackled in the middle of the street” by Eugene police patrolling for open container violations west of campus.

Coen Poelmann alleged in the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Eugene that officers Ian Aarts and Andrew Roberts violated his civil rights during the encounter at 1 a.m. Oct. 15, 2022. 

Roberts is no longer employed by Eugene police, having resigned in July. Aarts remains employed by the Eugene Police Department, an EPD spokesperson said Wednesday, Aug. 19.

No ruling has been made about whether officers used excessive force.

But U.S. Magistrate Judge Amy E. Potter ruled Monday that a “reasonable jury” could possibly view the “takedown arrest” of Poelmann, in which he was thrown face-first to the ground by officers, as “unreasonable because they resorted to force without warning and in absence of any immediate threat, active resistance, or an attempt to flee.”

The ruling denied a motion made by a city attorney that claims made against the officers should be dismissed under the legal concept of qualified immunity. The legal concept generally protects government officials, including police, from civil damages unless their conduct violates clearly established rights.

Potter ruled that “a reasonable officer in Defendants’ position would know that using substantial force for a nonviolent misdemeanor where there was no immediate threat to officer safety was unlawful.”

Potter wrote that Poelmann did not pose an immediate threat to the two officers who confronted him, and that he was stopped for what is considered a “only a minor violation” by officers who spotted him walking with a can of beer.

The judge’s opinion and order notes that Poelmann “was verbally combative during the initial encounter” but “there were no physical threats made to the officers or others.”

“Indeed, he stopped when he was told to and did not object when the beer can was taken from him and dumped it in the bushes. Less than two minutes into the encounter, Defendant Aarts decided to ‘do it the hard way’ and commenced the forcible takedown while simultaneously announcing that Plaintiff was under arrest,” Potter wrote, citing body-worn camera footage.

While the lawsuit initially named the city, Eugene Police Department and Chief Chris Skinner as defendants, Skinner had previously been dismissed from the case.

Potter ruled that claims may only move forward against Aarts and Roberts, finding that Poelmann “is not bringing a claim for municipal liability.”

Poelmann now lives in Saratoga, California, said Leah Johnson, the attorney representing the former UO student, who is now 23 years old.

“Mr. Poelmann appreciates the Court’s thoughtful analysis and opinion, but we will not be making additional comments on pending litigation,” Johnson said in an email.

A Eugene police spokesperson declined to comment on the lawsuit.