Civil Rights – Constitutional – Fourth Amendment – Malicious Prosecution – Arrest Warrants — Probable Cause

Williams v. Sims (Lawyers Weekly No. 002-159-12, 10 pp.) (Cameron McGowan Currie, J.) 3:10-cv-00382; D.S.C.

Holding: Although the solicitor’s office dismissed the charges against plaintiff without prejudice and returned the case to the sheriff’s office for further investigation, plaintiff has not shown that the defendant-deputy lacked probable cause to seek arrest warrants for him.

The defendant-deputy attests that he sought warrants for plaintiff’s arrest “after receiving credible information that indicated Plaintiff had admitted to the crimes, and that indicated the Plaintiff was in possession of at least some of the stolen property….” The deputy has provided copies of statements given by informants implicating plaintiff in the break-ins at issue.

Plaintiff makes no showing that the deputy entertained serious doubts as to the truth of his statements or had obvious reasons to doubt the accuracy of the information he reported. Nor has plaintiff shown that the deputy omitted from the affidavits material facts with the intent to make, or with reckless disregard of whether they thereby made, the affidavits misleading. Plaintiff has failed to show that the deputy lacked probable cause to seek the issuance of the arrest warrants, and his Fourth Amendment claim fails.

Furthermore, a dismissal without prejudice of pending charges is not a favorable disposition of criminal proceedings under S.C. law sufficient to sustain a claim of malicious prosecution.

Plaintiff’s federal claims are dismissed with prejudice. The court declines to exercise supplemental jurisdiction; accordingly, plaintiff’s state law claims are dismissed without prejudice.