Second Circuit – Due process: Smalls v. Collins et al; Daniel v. Taylor et al.

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United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

 Due process

Fabricated evidence – Probable cause – Innocence

Smalls v. Collins et al; Daniel v. Taylor et al.

20-1099-cv; 20-1331-cv

Judges Sack, Menashi, and Kaplan

 Background: The plaintiff-appellants each asserted claims that the defendants deprived them of their rights to a fair trial by fabricating evidence against them. In both cases, the district courts granted the defendants’ motions concluding that neither could establish favorable determinations under McDonough v. Smith, 139 S. Ct. 2149 (2019).

Ruling: The Second Circuit reversed. The court noted that a fair-trial claim will not be defeated by evidence of probable cause because it covers kinds of police misconduct not addressed by malicious prosecution claims and vindicates a different constitutional right: the right to due process. The court held that requiring a plaintiff alleging fabricated-evidence claims to establish that the underlying criminal proceeding ended in a manner that affirmatively indicates his innocence would also be fundamentally inconsistent with distinction between fair-trial and malicious-prosecution claims.

Joel B. Rudin and Gregory Antollino for the plaintiffs-appellants; John Moore, corporation counsel, for the defendants-appellees.