Bivens remedy was available to federal prisoner who alleged that correctional officer labeled him a snitch to other prisoners, offered them a bounty to assault him, and failed to protect him from predictable assault by another prisoner; court reasons that “no special factors counsel hesitation” in making a “very modest expansion” of the Bivens remedy under the 8th Amendment recognized in Carlson v. Green, 446 U.S. 14 (1980).
When officers are called for wellness checks or other non-criminal calls, this Court looks at what the officer learned and observed about the situation before the officer even engaged with anyone on the scene;” in this case officer’s asserted belief that he was arriving at a volatile scene was not supported; “even if the person’s hands are not visible—and even if he appears to be suspiciously reaching for something in his clothing—these facts would not lead a reasonable officer to believe that the person posed an immediate threat of serious harm;” where decedent was not acting aggressively
Officer could not tase mentally disturbed subject “for refusing to stop and show his hands unless he had some other reason to fear for his safety,” “mere failure to follow orders would not lead a reasonable officer to believe that [the subject] posed a danger;” if subject fell to ground for some minutes after two applications of taser, then third taser application could not be justified; reversing qualified immunity for officer.