If you believe that a 15-minute long chokehold on the NYC subway (that’s 900 seconds of asphyxiation) is a justified use of deadly force, you really need to read up on NY Penal Law 35.15.👇
Section 35.15 provides, in pertinent part, that a person may not use deadly physical force unless he “reasonably believes” that another person “is using or about to use deadly physical force” and that its use is “imminent.”
Further, deadly physical force may not be used if the individual, with complete safety as to himself and others, can avoid the necessity of such force by retreating. So there is a duty of retreat.
Finally, Jordan Neely’s past criminal history cannot serve as a post-hoc justification of the use of deadly physical force unless Daniel Penny was actually aware of Mr. Neely’s criminal record at the time he made the decision to place him in a deadly chokehold.
Per New York case law, the “critical focus” of the reasonableness inquiry under NY Penal Law s. 35.15 “must be placed on the particular defendant and the circumstances actually confronting him at the time of the incident . . .”
Marine Corps Close Combat Manual:
"The carotid hold, when properly applied, renders the subject unconscious in a matter of seconds. A tracheal hold takes anywhere from 2-3 minutes to render a subject unconscious.”
Penny, a former Marine sergeant, kept the chokehold for 15 mins.
“Courts have consistently held that chokeholds may not be continued once a suspect has been subdued. The reason for such a rule is obvious: once an individual has been effectively subdued, she no longer poses a significant threat, and therefore the need to use force has ended.”
"The application of any chokehold is properly considered the application of deadly force." See Coley v. Lucas County, 799 F.3d 530, 541 (6th Cir. 2015) (describing a chokehold as “deadly physical force”); Ingram v. Shipman-Meyer, 241 F. Supp. 3d 124, 140 (D.D.C. 2017).
6th Circuit: "Chokeholds are objectively unreasonable where an individual is already restrained. Gray's actions as described in the complaint violated clearly established law: Gray put Benton in a chokehold and continued to choke him even after Gray heard him gurgling and another… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
Bohannon could face federal criminal conspiracy charges under the Sports Bribery Act of 1964 (18 USC 2264) if he received anything of value to influence, or attempt to influence, “in any way” the outcome of any sporting contest.
The penalty for conspiracy to commit sports bribery and for unlawful use of interstate facilities is imprisonment for not more than five (5) years and/or a $250,000.00 fine.
A key obstacle to a settlement in the Rams relocation lawsuit: a difference of opinion over whether NFL relocation fee and increased franchise value from LA move are recoverable damages under any claim. With it, a multi-billion dollar case. Without it, barely a nine-figure case.
The only cause of action under which either component might be recoverable is unjust enrichment. But wouldn’t that create a windfall for the City? Also, is the franchise value increase attributable to the LA move readily ascertainable? Or is it too speculative to be awarded?
One principle to keep in mind on unjust enrichment: the notion that a party may not be put in a better condition than it would have been had the wrong not been committed. Wouldn't that be the case though if the City recovered the increased value of the Rams franchise ($3B+)?
NFL could be hit with punitive damages > $10B in Rams relocation lawsuit. The reasons: (1) pre-2020 MO law has a lower threshold ("reckless disregard"); (2) compensatory damages > $3B; (3) NFL = multi-billion $ corp.; and (4) PD/CD ratios OK'd in past MO cases > 5:1
The timing of this lawsuit couldn't be worse for the NFL. Prior to 2014, punitive damages were statutorily capped in Missouri. In 2020, the MO legislature passed a new law making it harder to recover PDs. This lawsuit was filed in 2017: no cap and less egregious conduct needed.
For cases filed before August 28, 2020, the standard is whether the defendant intentionally acted "either by a wanton, willful or outrageous act, or reckless disregard for an act's consequences (from which evil motive is inferred).”
A loss in the St. Louis Rams relocation lawsuit could cost the NFL more than $3 billion in damages (before punitives), consisting of disgorgement of LA franchise value increase (latest Forbes valuation is $4.8B) and NFL relocation fee ($550M), plus City’s lost revenues.
A key part of the City’s damages calculation is the disgorgement (return) of profits unjustly conferred upon the NFL, Rams and Kroenke due to alleged improper conduct. See claims of unjust enrichment, fraudulent misrepresentation and tortious interference from City’s complaint.
Under Missouri law, disgorgement and/or restitution of ill-gotten gains is one of the remedies for a claim of unjust enrichment.
BREAKING: DC Federal Court sets hearing date and briefing schedule on legal challenge to Florida sports betting compact. Video hearing is scheduled for Nov. 5 at 10 AM EST. Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment or preliminary injunction must be filed by Sept. 21.
Although the FL statute and compact provide for an Oct. 15 launch date for all sports betting, the reason for the later hearing date of Nov. 5 is based on the Tribe's representation that online sports betting will be implemented in Florida on November 15th (one month later).
Here's what prompted the seemingly out-of-nowhere hearing date and briefing schedule: West Flagler (the operator of Magic City Casino and Bonita Springs Poker Room) and the U.S. Dep't of Interior filed a joint motion yesterday requesting a briefing schedule and hearing date.
The 1st in-stadium sports book in the Northeast will be at Hartford's XL Center, the home of the New York Rangers minor-league affiliate. The 1st sports book in a sports bar in the NE will be Bobby V's, co-owned by former NY Mets manager @BobbyValentine. theday.com/business/20210…
Connecticut immediately leapfrogs New York as an early online sports betting revenue opportunity for NY’s pro sports team owners. The customer database of Madison Square Garden (the owner of the Hartford Wolf Pack) becomes an attractive target for CT operators.
The customer assets of all New York area professional sports teams become valuable targets for Connecticut sports betting operators, which will launch several months before NY online sports betting. NY to Stamford, CT via Grand Central Station is only 43 minutes.