On June 26, 2020, three individuals filed this lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana. The suit arose out of the protests that swept the nation following the police killing of George Floyd in May of 2020. The suit alleged that Fort Wayne Police Officers used chemical weapons, flash bang grenades, and rubber bullets on individuals peacefully protesting. They brought suit against the City of Fort Wayne and the Allen County Sheriff, arguing that these actions constituted a violation of 42 U.S.C. Section 1983. Specifically, plaintiffs claimed that these actions were violations of the First Amendment's guarantees of free speech, free assembly, and free petition. They also argued that the defendants used excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment. They sought declaratory relief, injunctive relief, and money damages, as well as attorney's fees and costs. Plaintiffs were represented by counsel from the ACLU of Indiana.

The case was assigned to Judge Holly A. Brady and Magistrate Judge Susan L. Collins on June 29. However, that same day Judge Brady recused herself and the case was reassigned to Judge Damon R. Leichty.

On July 2, 2020, plaintiffs submitted an amended complaint for declaratory and injunctive relief which added several individuals as plaintiffs along with two organizations: Black and Brown Liberation and the ACLU of Indiana. The legal claims and sought-after relief remained the same. That same day, plaintiffs submitted a motion for a preliminary injunction. The parties began to engage in preliminary discovery related to the motion for a preliminary injunction. The court set a hearing for October 15-16.

The plaintiffs amended the complaint again on August 28, 2020. They voluntarily dismissed one of the individual plaintiffs and also dismissed the Allen Country Sheriff as a defendant. The defendants agreed to the dismissal, and the parties stipulated that the City of Fort Wayne did not need to file an additional answer to the amended complaint.

As the hearing on the preliminary injunction neared, the plaintiffs then filed a motion to withdraw the motion for a preliminary injunction and to vacate the hearing on October 1, 2020. The court granted the motion the next day.

As of December 30, 2020, the case is ongoing.

Jack Hibbard - 08/04/2020
Emily Kempa - 12/30/2020


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