Tennessee v. Garner 471 U.S. 1 [1985]
In October of 1973, Memphis, Tennessee police responded to a report of a burglary in progress. Police Officer Elton Hymon went to the rear of the home while his partner was contacting headquarters. Hymon observed a person, later identified as Edward Garner, running across the yard, and stopping at a fence. With the use of his flashlight Hymon could see that Garner was “likely” unarmed and ordered him to stop. Garner began to climb the fence. Officer Hymon then shot Garner, striking him and Garner later died from the wound.
It should be noted that at the time Tennessee law allowed a police officer to use deadly force against a fleeing suspect.
An action was filed under 42 U.S.C. 1983 in the Western District of Tennessee District Court for a violation of constitutional rights. The District
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The Court, in a decision written for the majority by Justice Byron White, said that the use of deadly force against a fleeing suspect is not always unconstitutional. Deadly force can be used if there is probable cause that the fleeing suspect poses a serious threat to the officer or …show more content…
Additional officers arrived to back up Officer Connor. Graham was handcuffed by one of the back up officers and carried back to the vehicle. Graham regained consciousness and asked the officers to check his wallet for a diabetic decal, one of the officers told him to "shut up" and shoved his face down against the hood of the car. Four officers grabbed Graham and put him head first into the police car. During the incident Graham suffered a broken foot, cuts on his wrists, a bruised forehead, an injured shoulder; and claims to have developed a loud ringing in his right