Court Error Abuse of Discretion.

Byline: Derek Hawkins

7th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Calvin Lindsey v. Vince Macias, et al.

Case No.: 17-2963

Officials: EASTERBROOK, KANNE, and BRENNAN, Circuit Judges

Focus: Court Error Abuse of Discretion

After the State of Illinois dismissed criminal charges against plaintiff-appellant Calvin Lindsey for unlawful possession of a weapon, he filed this civil action asserting claims for false arrest, excessive force, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution under 42 U.S.C. 1983 and state law assault and battery. At trial, the jury returned a unanimous defense verdict on all counts.

On appeal, Lindsey seeks to vacate the judgment for two reasons. First, he contends the district court erred in refusing to modify its jury instruction on "possession" to stress that "mere proximity" to a gun is insufficient. Second, he asserts the district court abused its discretion by denying the jurors' request for a copy of a potentially impeaching interrogatory answer.

Neither of Lindsey's arguments warrants reversal. Our precedent rejects a requirement that a possession instruction include language expressly disclaiming the sufficiency of "mere proximity," and Lindsey presents no...