KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — In September 2023, a Knoxville judge dismissed part of a lawsuit arguing four officers broke the law after shooting and killing 17-year-old Anthony Thompson Jr. in a high school bathroom in April 2021.
On Feb. 14, a judge dismissed the rest of the lawsuit.
The other part of the lawsuit argued that the City of Knoxville acted unconstitutionally after the fatal shooting. It originally argued the officers failed to follow proper training and procedures — and failed to provide the teenager with appropriate medical care after shooting him. The lawsuit also alleges the department failed to properly train officers on de-escalation tactics.
Thompson's mother, Chanada Robinson, and Thompson's friend, Gralyn Strong, also sought damages — including the cost of burial, for which Robinson took out a loan — and additional training for the Knoxville Police Department.
The court previously dismissed a portion of the lawsuit arguing misdeeds by the officers involved. The judge previously said his decision to grant judgment to the officers was a matter of law. In the lawsuit, the officers argued they were entitled to qualified immunity based on the circumstances surrounding the shooting.
"Because Defendants had probable cause to believe that Anthony committed a domestic assault, they had authority to take him into custody at Austin East and are thus entitled to qualified immunity," a judge said. "After a gun fired from inside Anthony’s sweatshirt pocket, Clabough (an officer) certainly had probable cause to believe that Anthony posed a threat of serious harm to himself and his fellow officers when he discharged his weapon four seconds later."
After dismissing the portion of the lawsuit arguing the officers acted unconstitutionally, Knoxville attorneys argued that the portion of the lawsuit against the city should also be dismissed because the court found officers did not violate any of the plaintiffs' constitutional rights — indicating that there was no misdeed on the city's part either.
"This argument accurately reflects the current state of the law, as the Sixth Circuit has consistently held that an underlying constitutional violation is a prerequisite to municipal liability," the court's order said. "Plaintiff Strong concedes as much and admits that he has no claims against the City of Knoxville in the absence of an underlying constitutional violation."