On Thursday, the Supreme Court revived a lawsuit against the FBI stemming from an October 2017 incident in which agents mistakenly raided the wrong house in Atlanta. The unanimous decision, authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch, allows Toi Cliatt, his former girlfriend Trina Martina, and her son Gabe Watson to continue pressing claims of assault, battery, and false imprisonment under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA). This ruling is significant as it offers one of the few pathways to hold federal agencies accountable for their actions.
The case underscores ongoing concerns about law enforcement operations targeting the wrong residences, a troubling phenomenon evident in several high-profile incidents. Previously, both a district court and the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the government. The legal focus is on whether the discretionary function exception—designed to protect certain governmental decisions from liability—applies in this case. While the Supreme Court did not definitively address this question, it removed legal barriers enabling the plaintiffs to argue their case in lower courts.
Justice Gorsuch acknowledged differing interpretations of the discretionary function exception among lower courts, hinting at the complexities involved. In a concurring opinion, Justice Sonia Sotomayor suggested that there are valid reasons to believe this exception should not impede the plaintiffs’ claims.
During the botched raid, agents equipped with guns forced their way into the home, handcuffed Cliatt, and prevented Martina from reaching her son, Watson, who was startled awake by the incident. The FBI initially targeted the wrong residence due to misleading GPS directions but later apprehended the intended suspect, Joseph Riley, at the correct location. The agents apologized after realizing their mistake.
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