"The high court itself established that protection in a series of decisions dating back several decades, letting police off the hook unless their behavior violated "clearly established" laws or constitutional rights. Lower courts have used that standard to uphold almost any actions not specifically forbidden.
But in recent years, justices, lower court judges and scholars on both the left and right have questioned that legal doctrine for creating a nearly impossible standard for victims to meet and a nearly blanket immunity for those accused of misconduct.
The justices have been reviewing more than a dozen cases involving public officials' invocation of qualified immunity with an eye toward choosing one or more to hear next term. If they move ahead, it would indicate that at least several justices want to cut back on such immunity.
The timing of their review process on the heels of Floyd's death in Minneapolis is purely coincidental. But the 46-year-old African American man's treatment puts the issue in the spotlight.
Associate Justice Clarence Thomas is leading an effort to get the Supreme Court to reconsider its doctrine of qualified immunity, which protects public officials against lawsuits.
"It's a vivid and tragic example of our culture of near-zero accountability for police officers," says Jay Schweikert, a criminal justice analyst at the libertarian Cato Institute, one of the leading advocacy groups seeking to limit or eliminate qualified immunity. “People understand that officers are rarely held to account.”
But in recent years, justices, lower court judges and scholars on both the left and right have questioned that legal doctrine for creating a nearly impossible standard for victims to meet and a nearly blanket immunity for those accused of misconduct.
The justices have been reviewing more than a dozen cases involving public officials' invocation of qualified immunity with an eye toward choosing one or more to hear next term. If they move ahead, it would indicate that at least several justices want to cut back on such immunity.
The timing of their review process on the heels of Floyd's death in Minneapolis is purely coincidental. But the 46-year-old African American man's treatment puts the issue in the spotlight.
Associate Justice Clarence Thomas is leading an effort to get the Supreme Court to reconsider its doctrine of qualified immunity, which protects public officials against lawsuits.
"It's a vivid and tragic example of our culture of near-zero accountability for police officers," says Jay Schweikert, a criminal justice analyst at the libertarian Cato Institute, one of the leading advocacy groups seeking to limit or eliminate qualified immunity. “People understand that officers are rarely held to account.”