National Academies Press: OpenBook

Policing and Public Transportation (2022)

Chapter: INTRODUCTION

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Suggested Citation:"INTRODUCTION." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Policing and Public Transportation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26652.
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Page 5
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Suggested Citation:"INTRODUCTION." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Policing and Public Transportation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26652.
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Page 4

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TCRP LRD 58 5 POLICING AND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION Larry W. Thomas, The Thomas Law Firm, Washington, DC INTRODUCTION This digest analyzes constitutional issues and cases arising under the Civil Rights Act of 1871, 42 U.S.C. § 1983, for alleged violations by public transportation authorities of individuals’ constitutional or other federal rights in the course of the author- ities’ policing of their stations and other facilities and property. The digest is organized in nine parts and 21 sections. Part I discusses civil rights claims under § 1983, including whether a public transportation authority may be liable for a claim because of a policy or custom of the authority that violates § 1983, or because of the authority’s deliberate indifference to an individual’s constitutional or other federal rights; whether a police officer has qualified immunity to § 1983 claims; and whether a police officer’s mistake of fact or law affects the of- ficer’s qualified immunity in § 1983 cases. Part II addresses § 1983 claims against public transportation authorities and police officers for alleged false arrest or false imprisonment, unlawful searches and seizures, use of exces- sive force, malicious prosecution or abuse of process, invasion of privacy, as well as for a police officer’s failure to intervene to prevent another officer’s violation of a person’s civil liberties. Part III analyzes § 1983 claims against public transportation authorities or police officers for the alleged denial of a defen- dant’s right to due process, including a defendant’s right to a fair trial, and for the denial of procedural due process caused by laws that are allegedly unconstitutionally vague or overbroad. Part III analyzes § 1983 claims by plaintiffs seeking redress for the al- leged denial of his or her right to the equal protection of the law under the Fourteenth Amendment, including claims for dispa- rate treatment, disparate impact, and discriminatory profiling. Part III also discusses liability of public transportation authori- ties under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for disparate treatment or disparate impact. Part IV discusses § 1983 actions by homeless persons under the Eighth Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment against laws that limit or prohibit their use or occupancy of public property or space, such as sta- tions and other property belonging to a public transportation authority. Part V analyzes the issue of whether under the Second Amendment public transportation authorities may regulate or prohibit the carrying of firearms by members of the public in or on a means of public transportation. Part VI examines the question of whether a public trans- portation authority is a common carrier and, thus, is subject to a higher standard of care when the authority is sued for neg- ligence for failing to protect passengers from assaults by other passengers or for negligent policing. Part VII reviews public health and safety directives or man- dates issued by the federal and state governments during the COVID-19 pandemic and discusses actions that public trans- portation authorities took and passengers’ compliance with public health mandates, such as those requiring passengers to wear face masks. Part VIII discusses public transportation authorities’ effec- tive use of public relations to support their policing, analyzes the authorities’ law enforcement organizational and contractual structures, and examines their administration of law enforce- ment, including their use of community policing. The digest highlights agreements and policies that public transportation authorities are using to structure and organize their policing, including their use of inter-agency and inter-force agreements. Part IX discusses best practices that some public transporta- tion authorities have adopted for the policing of their stations, vehicles, and other property, including best practices for the col- lection of fares and detection of fare evasion. PART I – Civil Rights Claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, Prerequisites for Liability of Public Transportation Authorities, Qualified Immunity of Police Officers, and the Effect of a Police Officer’s Mistake of Fact or Law on Liability under § 1983 I. POLICING BY PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITIES AND CIVIL RIGHTS CLAIMS UNDER 42 U.S.C. § 1983 A. Introduction The digest analyzes cases brought by plaintiffs against pub- lic transportation authorities pursuant to the Civil Rights Act of 1871, 42 U.S.C. § 1983, for alleged violations of the plain- tiffs’ constitutional and other federal rights resulting from the authori ties’ policing of their stations, facilities, and other prop- erty. Section 1983 states that [e]very person who, under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State or Territory or the District of Columbia, subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States or other person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured in an action at law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress....

4 TCRP LRD 58 XX. Public Transportation Authorities’ Agreements and Strategies for Effective Administration of Law Enforcement and Training, 46 A. Agreements and Intergovernmental Agreements for Police Assistance Services, 46 B. Memorandum of Understanding for Police Services, 48 C. Model Policy for Enhanced Transit Policing, 48 PART IX - Best Practices for Policing by Transportation Authorities, 48 XXI. Public Transportation Authorities’ Best Practices for Policing, 48 A. Best Practices for Policing Stations, Vehicles, and Other Property, 48 B. Best Practices to Consider regarding Fare Collection and the Prevention of Fare Evasion, 49 Conclusion, 51 Appendix A Agreements, Policies, Reports, and other Documents Provided by Public Transportation Authorities for the Digest, 53

Next: PART I Civil Rights Claims under 42 U.S.C. 1983, Prerequisites for Liability of Public Transportation Authorities, Qualified Immunity of Police Officers, and the Effect of a Police Officer s Mistake of Fact or Law on Liability under 1983 »
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Compliance with transit-equipment and operations guidelines, FTA financing initiatives, private-sector programs, and labor or environmental standards relating to transit operations are some of the legal issues and problems unique to transit agencies.

The TRB Transit Cooperative Research Program's TCRP Legal Research Digest 58: Policing and Public Transportation provides a comprehensive analysis of constitutional issues and summarizes current laws and practices that apply to policing by public transportation agencies.

Supplemental to the Digest is Appendix A: Agreements, Policies, Reports, and Other Documents Provided by Public Transportation Authorities for the Report.

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