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Cardy v. Barnes
Citation: 357 F. App'x 405Docket: No. 08-3519
Court: Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit; December 17, 2009; Federal Appellate Court
Jurisdiction to review a summary judgment order denying qualified immunity is limited to legal issues. In this case, conflicting accounts regarding an alleged excessive force incident create material factual disputes. An eyewitness testified that the plaintiff was violently slammed to the ground, resulting in a noticeable injury, specifically her ankle bone snapping. Conversely, Officer Findlay asserted that he executed a controlled takedown maneuver, which was not violent and involved bringing the plaintiff down to her stomach. The District Court concluded that the defendants' qualified immunity analysis was flawed because it relied on the disputed assertion that the takedown was controlled and non-violent. Due to this critical factual dispute related to the qualified immunity claim, the court lacks jurisdiction and dismisses the appeal.