Denise Mejia v. Wesley Miller

Summary

The Ninth Circuit amended its opinion and denied rehearing in a Bivens action arising from a Bureau of Land Management officer’s alleged use of excessive force during an attempted arrest on public lands. The court held that the claim arose in a new Bivens context and that special factors, including alternative administrative remedies and uncertainty about systemwide consequences, foreclosed implying a damages remedy. It vacated the district court’s denial of summary judgment and remanded with instructions to dismiss the excessive-force claim with prejudice.

Holdings

1. The Ninth Circuit had jurisdiction to decide whether a Bivens cause of action existed because the existence of the cause of action was an antecedent legal question defining the claim and was directly implicated by qualified immunity.
2. Mejia's claim arose in a new Bivens context.
3. No Bivens cause of action existed for Mejia's Fourth Amendment excessive-force claim, because special factors counseled against implying a remedy.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Ninth Circuit had jurisdiction on an interlocutory appeal to decide whether a Bivens cause of action existed.
2. Whether Mejia's Fourth Amendment excessive-force claim against a BLM officer presented a new Bivens context.
3. Whether special factors, including alternative administrative remedies and potential systemwide consequences, foreclosed implying a Bivens damages remedy.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded