NACDL - Taylor v. County of Pima

Taylor v. County of Pima

Brief of National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, The Innocence Project, California Attorneys for Criminal Justice, The National Police Accountability Project, Center of the Administration of Criminal Law and NYU School of Law, Human Rights Defense Center, and New Mexico Criminal Defense Lawyers Association as Amici Curiae in Support of Plaintiff-Appellee

Taylor v. County of Pima

Brief Details

Case No.: 17-16980
Brief Filed: March 14, 2019
Jurisdiction: 9th Circuit Court of Appeals

Key Topics in the Brief

Wrongful Conviction | Government Immunity | No-Contest Plea | Coercion | Heck

Briefs

Taylor-v-County-of-Pima-amicus.pdf

Prior Decision

Panel decision 913 F.3d 930 (9th Cir. Jan. 17, 2019)

Argument(s)

Rehearing is warranted to preclude governments from immunizing themselves from liability by conditioning release from wrongful incarceration on a no-contest plea. The inherently coercive no-contest plea required as a condition of release from wrongful imprisonment should not be allowed to confer immunity. Heck does not apply to lawsuits by former prisoners who have completed their sentences and cannot seek a writ of habeas corpus. The panel’s majority causation holding should be reheard to prevent significant and deleterious practical effects. Restricting Heck to its proper scope will not unduly burden government, but would serve the interests of justice.