Judy Shepard v. Pete Geren

1 The Honorable Mark Bennett, United States District Judge for the Northern
District of Iowa.
United States Court of Appeals
FOR THE EIGHTH CIRCUIT
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No. 10-3473
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William Eugene Leventhal, *
*
Appellant, *
* Appeal from the United States
v. * District Court for the
* Northern District of Iowa.
Sgt. Daniel Schaffer, *
* [UNPUBLISHED]
Appellee, *
*
Lt. Jeff Ritzman, *
*
Defendant. *
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Submitted: June 7, 2011
Filed: June 9, 2011
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Before MELLOY, GRUENDER, and BENTON, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.
William Leventhal appeals the district court’s1 judgment following a bench trial
in his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action against Sergeant Daniel Schaffer of the Iowa State
Patrol. This court reviews the trial court’s findings of fact for clear error and its
conclusions of law de novo. See Darst-Webbe Tenant Ass’n Bd. v. St. Louis Hous.

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-2-
Auth., 339 F.3d 702, 710-11 (8th Cir. 2003). The district court’s factual findings are
not clearly erroneous because they are supported by three witnesses’ testimony. Based
on these findings, Schaffer’s belief that he had probable cause to arrest Leventhal for
disorderly conduct was reasonable under the circumstances, entitling him to qualified
immunity. See Amrine v. Brooks, 522 F.3d 823, 831 (8th Cir. 2008).
This court affirms. See 8th Cir. R. 47B.
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