## Facts

- New Mexico State Police officers Janice Madrid and Richard Williamson went to an Albuquerque apartment complex to execute an arrest warrant.
- Roxanne Torres arrived in a Toyota FJ Cruiser, parked, and got into the driver’s seat.
- The officers, wearing tactical gear and displaying badges, approached and ordered Torres to show her hands.
- Torres, after using methamphetamine for two days, believed the officers were carjackers and drove away.
- Believing Torres was driving toward them, the officers fired 13 shots; Torres was hit twice.
- Torres continued driving, reached a hospital about 75 miles away, and was arrested the next day.
- Torres later pleaded no contest to multiple state charges, including aggravated fleeing from a law enforcement officer and assault on a peace officer.
- Torres sued under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, alleging the shooting was excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment.

## Issues

1. Whether the application of physical force to a person’s body with intent to restrain is a Fourth Amendment seizure when the person does not submit and is not subdued.
2. Whether being shot by police while fleeing can constitute a seizure even if the suspect continues to escape.

## Decision

- The Supreme Court held (5–3) that the application of physical force to the body of a person with intent to restrain is a seizure, even if the person does not submit and is not subdued.
- The Court ruled that the officers’ bullets striking Torres constituted a seizure for the instant the bullets hit her.
- The Court vacated the Tenth Circuit’s judgment and remanded for further proceedings, including reasonableness and qualified immunity issues not decided by the Court.

## Legal Principles

- A Fourth Amendment seizure of a person occurs when an officer applies physical force to the person’s body with objective intent to restrain, regardless of whether the restraint succeeds.
- Seizure by show of authority requires submission; seizure by force does not require submission.
- Accidental or unintentional force does not qualify as a seizure; the force must be applied with intent to restrain.
- A seizure by force lasts only as long as the application of force; where a person escapes immediately after being struck, the seizure is limited to the moment of contact.
- Whether the force used was unreasonable, and whether officers are entitled to qualified immunity, are separate questions from whether a seizure occurred.

## Conclusion

The Court concluded that bullets striking a fleeing suspect can constitute a Fourth Amendment seizure when fired with intent to restrain, even if the suspect escapes, and sent the case back for determination of reasonableness and qualified immunity.


Torres v. Madrid, 592 U.S. 306 (2021)