US SUPREME COURT DECISIONS
502 U.S. 224
Subscribe to Cases that cite 502 U.S. 224OCTOBER TERM, 1991
Per Curiam
HUNTER ET AL. v. BRYANT
ON PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
No. 90-1440. Decided December 16, 1991
Petitioner Secret Service agents arrested respondent Bryant for making threats against President Reagan in violation of federal law. At the time of the arrest, the agents knew that Bryant had written, and delivered to offices at the University of Southern California, a letter referring to a plot to assassinate the President; that a witness had identified Bryant and reported that he said that the President should have been assassinated in West Germany, where he was then traveling; and that Bryant had refused to answer the agents' questions about whether he intended to harm the President. Mter the criminal complaint against him was dismissed, Bryant sued the agents, inter alios, seeking relief under the Federal Tort Claims Act and claiming, among other things, that he had been arrested without probable cause and a warrant. The District Court denied the agents' motion for summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds. The Court of Appeals held that they were entitled to qualified immunity for arresting Bryant without a warrant but not for arresting him without probable cause, because their belief that he was plotting to kill the President was not the most reasonable reading of the letter.
Held: Petitioners are entitled to qualified immunity. They are shielded from suit because a reasonable officer could have believed the arrest to be lawful in light of clearly established law and the information the agents possessed. Anderson v. Creighton, 483 U. S. 635, 641. On the basis of that information, a Magistrate ordered Bryant held without bond. Even assuming that they erred in concluding that probable cause existed, they would nevertheless be entitled to qualified immunity because their decision was reasonable. Ibid. Officials should not err always on the side of caution because they fear being sued, a principle that is nowhere more important than when the specter of Presidential assassination is raised.
Certiorari granted; 903 F.2d 717, reversed and remanded.
PER CURIAM.
On May 3, 1985, respondent James V. Bryant delivered two photocopies of a handwritten letter to two administrative
offices at the University of Southern California. The rambling letter referred to a plot to assassinate President Ronald Reagan by "Mr Image," who was described as "Communist white men within the 'National Council of Churches.'" The letter stated that "Mr Image wants to murder President Reagan on his up and coming trip to Germany," that "Mr Image had conspired with a large number of U. S. officials in the plot to murder President Reagan" and others, and that "Mr Image (NCC) still plans on murdering the President on his trip to Germany in May, 1985." See Bryant v. United States Treasury Department, Secret Service, 903 F.2d 717, 724-727 (CA9 1990) (Bryant's letter). President Reagan was traveling in Germany at the time.
A campus police sergeant telephoned the Secret Service, and agent Brian Hunter responded to the call. After reading the letter, agent Hunter interviewed university employees. One identified James Bryant as the man who had delivered the letter and reported that Bryant had "told her '[h]e should have been assassinated in Bonn.'" Another employee said that the man who delivered the letter made statements about "'bloody coups'" and "'assassination,'" and said something about" 'across the throat' " while moving his hand horizontally across his throat to simulate a cutting action. Id., at 718-719.
Hunter and another Secret Service agent, Jeffrey Jordan, then visited a local address that appeared on the letter. Bryant came to the door and gave the agents permission to enter. He admitted writing and delivering the letter, but refused to identify "Mr. Image" and answered questions about "Mr. Image" in a rambling fashion. Bryant gave Hunter permission to search the apartment, and the agent found the original of the letter. While the search was underway, Jordan continued questioning Bryant, who refused to answer questions about his feelings toward the President or to state whether he intended to harm the President. Id., at 719.
