Felder v. Moore et al

On February 24, 2025, Jamal Felder, a 29-year-old African American man, was fatally shot by Officer Daniel Moore during a traffic stop in Brookhaven, Georgia. Officer Moore alleged Felder reached for a weapon; dashcam and bystander footage contradicted this, showing Felder with hands raised. The Felder family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging excessive force, unlawful seizure, and municipal liability. The case drew national attention, with the Department of Justice opening a parallel pattern-or-practice investigation into the Brookhaven Police Department.

The jury found Officer Moore liable for excessive force and denied qualified immunity. The court entered a judgment of $18.5 million in compensatory and punitive damages for the plaintiff. The City of Brookhaven also settled the municipal liability claim for an additional $5 million and agreed to implement court-monitored reforms.

Whether Officer Moore's use of deadly force was objectively unreasonable under the Fourth Amendment; whether the officer was entitled to qualified immunity; and whether the city failed to properly train and supervise its officers, reflecting a custom of deliberate indifference to constitutional rights.

The verdict intensified national debates on qualified immunity and police accountability, leading to protests across major U.S. cities. It prompted Congress to reintroduce the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and spurred several states to pass legislation restricting the use of deadly force and mandating independent investigations of police shootings.