CA10: Detention without reasonable suspicion was clearly established

Officers lacked reasonable suspicion to detain plaintiff for vandalism of a car. All they knew was that he was Hispanic and lived in the same apartment complex. He fled when he saw them. This was clearly established at the time. The excessive force claim was not ruled on by the district court, so the case is remanded for that. Romero v. Story, 672 F.3d 880 (10th Cir. 2012)*:

Defendants believe our holding will “give the police no recourse to interview a potential suspect to a crime.” In response to this argument, we need only to look to the Constitution. The Fourth Amendment protects “[t]he right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.” U.S. Const. amend. IV. A citizen has the constitutional right to walk away from a law enforcement officer who lacks probable cause or reasonable suspicion to detain or seize him or her. See Kentucky v. King, 131 S.Ct. 1849, 1862, 179 L. Ed. 2d 865 (2011). The Supreme Court has told us that when law enforcement officers knock on a door without a search warrant and the occupant makes the decision to open the door and speak to the officers, the occupant “may refuse to answer any questions at any time.” Id. This holding is unremarkable and certainly not novel. If the officers want to force a suspect to speak, they must have reasonable suspicion or probable cause. The Constitution mandates no less. Because we hold Defendants lacked reasonable suspicion to detain Plaintiff for the vandalism, Defendants lacked probable cause to arrest Plaintiff for flight or evasion under N.M. Stat. Ann. § 30-22-1(B), thereby violating Plaintiff’s constitutional right to be free from unlawful arrest.