Gabriel Gomez Maciel v. Mylissa Coleman, in her official and individual capacities; City of Spokane, No. 2:17-cv-00292 (E.D. Wa. filed August 21, 2017)

On August 24, 2014, Gabriel Gomez Maciel was driving to church when his pickup truck was struck by a minivan. Mylissa Coleman, who at the time was working as a police officer for the City of Spokane, arrived at the scene of the accident to investigate, and contacted the Border Patrol to ask whether the agency had any interest in Gomez. Coleman contacted the Border Patrol solely on the basis of Gomez’s race and ethnicity.

Even though Gomez had been injured in the accident, Coleman did not ask if he needed medical assistance. Even after she completed her investigation of the accident and cited the minivan driver, Coleman continued to detain Gomez Coleman’s continued detention of Gomez was not justified by reasonable suspicion, much less probable cause. Eventually, Border Patrol agents arrived and transferred Gomez to the Tacoma immigration detention center, where he remained for one month until he was able to post bond.

On August 21, 2017, the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project filed a complaint in the United States District Court in the Eastern District of Washington against Mylissa Coleman and the City of Spokane pursuant to42 U.S.C. § 1983 and Article 1, § 7 of the Constitution of the State of Washington. Gomez alleges that he suffered substantial physical, emotional, and economic harm as a result of his unlawful detention.

On November 13, 2017, the parties notified the Court that the case had settled. As part of the settlement agreement, the parties agreed to a number of conditions. The City of Spokane agreed to modify its policies to clarify that police officers “shall not contact, question, delay, detain, or arrest an individual [because] s/he is suspected of violating immigration laws.” The City has also agreed to provide training to City police officers regarding the policy change. As part of the settlement, the City also agreed to pay a total of $49,000 in damages and fees.

• Complaint