Officer Who Didn’t Knock, Announce Must Face Civil Rights Suit

A police officer who shot a suspected drug dealer while executing a search warrant on his home isn’t immune from the dealer’s civil rights suit, the Fourth Circuit said.

Looking at the facts in the light most favorable to Julian Betton, Myrtle Beach, S.C., police officer David Belue’s conduct violated the Fourth Amendment, and the law on the issue was clearly established at the time, the opinion by Judge Barbara Milano Keenan said.

After a confidential informant bought marijuana from Betton, Belue and other drug task force members who were all in plain clothes executed the warrant on Betton’s house. ...