Jones v. Warner

The trial court erred in granting summary judgment to an officer on the plaintiff's malicious prosecution claim, because the evidence showed that a prosecution had occurred and a question of fact existed as to whether the officer arrested the plaintiff without probable cause.

Thank you for sharing!

Your article was successfully shared with the contacts you provided.

Chastity Jones appeals from the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to City of Atlanta Officer Adriane Warner concerning Jones’s claims for false arrest, malicious prosecution, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Jones argues that questions of fact remain as to whether Warner acted with actual malice and whether Jones herself suffered severe emotional distress. We agree with the first of these contentions and therefore reverse in part and affirm in part. “Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56 c. A de novo standard of review applies to an appeal from a grant of summary judgment, and we view the evidence, and all reasonable conclusions and inferences drawn from it, in the light most favorable to the nonmovant.” Bateast v. DeKalb County ., 258 Ga. App. 131 572 SE2d 756 2002.

So viewed, the record shows that on March 15, 2007, Jones, William Voltz, and John Street were eating inside a KFC restaurant in downtown Atlanta when Jones and Street decided to visit Atlantic Station. Jones saw a police van parked outside and noticed Officer Warner sitting in it. Jones left the restaurant, approached the van and asked Warner, who was on a radio call at the time, how to get to Atlantic Station. When Warner did not respond, Jones repeated her question. Warner lifted her finger so as to indicate that Jones should wait, said “17th Street,” and pointed to the right. When Jones again asked her “Where is that”, Warner replied, “Can’t you see I am on my radio” Jones then turned away from Warner, began to walk back towards the restaurant, and said, “You didn’t have to be so rude about it.”

Jones v. Warner

The trial court erred in granting summary judgment to an officer on the plaintiff's malicious prosecution claim, because the evidence showed that a prosecution had occurred and a question of fact existed as to whether the officer arrested the plaintiff without probable cause.

Share with Email

Thank you for sharing!

Trending Stories

More From ALM

Subscribe to Daily Report