1. The U.S. government can be sued for the constitutional torts of federal law enforcement officers who have the
authority to search and arrest under:
a. the Bivens rule.
b. the Federal Tort Claims Act.
c. Section 1983.
d. state tort law.
2. The legal doctrine of holding employers liable for wrongs committed by their employees if the employee is acting
in the scope of employment is known as:
a. no duty to protect.
b. sovereign immunity.
c. color of law.
d. respondeat superior.
3. Prior to 1971, individuals were banned from suing ____________ for violations of their constitutional rights, but
that changed in Bivens v. Six Unnamed FBI Agents (1971).
a. the superiors of law enforcement officers
b. individual law enforcement officers
c. the government units in charge of officers and departments
d. law enforcement agencies
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
4. Which of the following is NOT a remedy for illegal government action?
a. Internal discipline
b. Legislative action
c. Damage suits against governments
d. Criminal prosecution
5. Which of the following is not a stage of internal review?
a. Investigation
b. Arbitration
c. Deliberation
d. Disposition
6. According to the Supreme Court in Anderson v. Creighton, involving a lawsuit for damages stemming from the
FBI’swarrantlesssearchofahouse,policeofficersareentitledtoqualifiedimmunityfortheirillegalacts:
a. never.
b. when they acted in subjective good faith.
c. when they can establish that a reasonable officer could have believed that the search did not violate the
Fourth Amendment, even though it actually did.
d. even if they violate a clearly established right.
7. The U.S. Supreme Court has put which of the following limitations on 1983 actions?
a. They can only be brought for negligent acts.
b. They can only be brought against government bodies.
c. They can only be brought against senior government administrators.
d. They can only be brought for deliberate acts.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
8. Civil actions by citizens against the government derive from all of the following except:
a. state tort law
b. federal statutes
c. penal codes
d. U.S. Constitution
9. According to the defense of official immunity, an officer is personally liable:
a. for any misconduct while on duty.
b. for any willful or malicious misconduct.
c. for any negligent act while exercising personal discretion.
d. whenever she exercises her personal judgment.
10. Bivens actions are:
a. constitutional tort actions against federal officers.
b. prohibited against officials who act under color of authority.
c. do not have to show unreasonable legal action by the defendants.
d. banned against federal officials.
11. The first U.S. ______________ case was DeShaney v. Winnebago County Department of Social Services
(1989).
a. civil action
b. duty-to-protect
c. limited liability
d. strict liability
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
12. According to Pinder v. Johnson, involving a lawsuit by a mother against a police officer and others for the death
of her children in a fire:
a. public officials owe private citizens the right to protect them from damage from one another.
b. a violation of clearly established law is not recoverable.
c. the due process clause does not require government actors to affirmatively protect life.
d. an affirmative duty to protect life can never arise on the part of government officials.
13. According to Pinder v. Johnson, involving a lawsuit by a mother against police officers and others for the death
of her children in a fire:
a. the due process clauses create an official duty to protect life.
b. a duty to protect life can arise when the state restrains citizens from acting on their own behalf.
c. an affirmative duty to protect life can never arise on the part of government officials.
d. government action can never create a duty to protect life.
14. Judges have _____________________ from civil lawsuits for actions they take while performing their official
judicial duties.
a. official immunity
b. functional immunity
c. sovereign immunity
d. absolute immunity
15. Which of the following are always protected by absolute immunity from civil lawsuits while they are performing
their official duties?
a. Judges
b. Prosecutors
c. Juries
d. Police officers
16. According to the U.S. Supreme Court, there is an exception to the no-duty-to-protect-rule, called the
special-relationship exception. That special relationship is:
a. dependent on the crime committed.
b. custody.
c. when a suspect is being interrogated.
d. when a warrant is being served.
17. People who sue the government or its officers under section 1983 are:
a. usually successful.
b. usually successful if the violation was extreme.
c. rarely successful.
d. usually successful because juries do not believe police officers tell the truth.
18. The most common mechanism for holding police accountable for their misconduct is:
a. a tort lawsuit.
b. a section 1983 lawsuit.
c. a letter of complaint.
d. administrative review and discipline.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
19. Internal review of police misconduct involves review:
a. of misconduct by civilians.
b. of misconduct by a special team of officers in the department.
c. by a special master appointed by the court.
d. by officers in another police department.
20. The major objection to internal review of police misconduct is:
a. police officers do not trust the officers conducting the investigation of misconduct.
b. a police department has to divert resources away from fighting crime.
c. the police should not be policing themselves.
d. external review is less expensive and better received by the media.
21. Individual officers or government agencies cannot be sued for failing to stop private people from violating their
rights by inflicting injuries on them. This is known as the:
a. no special relationship rule.
b. no affirmative duty to protect rule.
c. state did not create the danger rule.
d. avoid danger rule.
22. When the government takes a person into custody against their will the government:
a. does not have a duty to protect them from being injured by other private persons.
b. created the danger taking them into custody, so it must protect them.
c. must protect them because a special relationship has been created with the person in custody who cannot
protect themselves.
d. only has the duty to protect the person in custody from harm by government officers.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
23. Research about the effectiveness of civilian review boards shows that:
a. they are very effective in investigating police misconduct.
b. civilians are not well equipped to evaluate police misconduct.
c. it is difficult to measure their effectiveness.
d. most large cities do not use civilian review, therefore data is lacking.
24. Research indicates that:
a. civilianreviewproceduresrarelysustaincitizens’complaintsaboutpolice.
b. civilianreviewproceduresoverwhelminglysustaincitizens’complaintsaboutthepolice.
c. civilian review boards refuse to hear many of the complaints filed against the police.
d. most civilian review procedures allow the boards to take disciplinary action against police officers.
25. Beltran v. City of El Paso (2004) ruled that:
a. a 911 operator had an affirmative duty to protect a mother and her daughter from their husband/father who
murdered them.
b. a 911 operator had no affirmative duty to protect a mother and daughter from their husband/father who
murdered them.
c. the 911 operator violated the due process rights of the murdered mother and daughter due to the
operator’sfailuretoprotectthem.
d. the 911 operator violated the constitutional rights of the murdered mother and daughter due to the operator
conveying untruthful information.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
26. Law enforcement officers have a defense called _______________, wherein individual officers cannot be held
personally liable for official action if their action meets the test of objective legal reasonableness.
a. qualified immunity
b. the good faith defense
c. the Bivens umbrella
d. the law enforcement exception
27. Most plaintiffs who file civil lawsuits against police officers are seeking:
a. monetary damages.
b. injunctions.
c. declaratory judgments.
d. an apology.
28. According to the qualified immunity defense, law enforcement officers cannot be held personally liable in a civil
lawsuit if:
a. the officer honestly believed they had not violated the law.
b. the officer can show that under the circumstances their actions were warranted.
c. theofficercanshowtheiractionwasobjectivelyreasonableasmeasuredbylegalrules“clearlyestablished”
at the time they acted.
d. criminal charges are also not filed against them.
29. Which of the following acts is statistically the single greatest cause of injury to women in America?
a. Homicide by strangers
b. Domestic violence
c. Drinking and driving
d. Sexual assault
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
30. Which legal doctrine prohibits people from suing the government without its consent?
a. Qualified immunity
b. Absolute immunity
c. Official immunity
d. Sovereign immunity
31. The Federal Tort Claims Act:
a. waives sovereign immunity and allows lawsuits against the federal government for the constitutional torts of
its officers.
b. allows citizens to submit their damage claims resulting from constitutional torts to a panel charged with
deciding if the claim should be paid.
c. upholdsthegovernment’ssovereignimmunityfromlawsuit.
d. only allows lawsuits against the individual officers involved.
32. Which is true regarding suits against city agencies?
a. The city/agency may be sued when their policies or customs result in injuries that the agency is responsible
for under section 1983.
b. There are no restrictions on suing any government agency or its agents.
c. A local government can be sued for an injury inflicted solely because of the individual actions by its
employees or agents, whether on or off-duty.
d. Police officers can never be sued under the Police Officer’s Bill of Rights.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
33. Heightening the possibility of a successful Bivens action requires the plaintiff to prove that: (1) an officer was acting
under the color of the law; and (2): that the officer:
a. willfully neglected the request of a private citizen for help because of having to prioritize other calls for
service.
b. used reasonable force to arrest but nonetheless injured the person.
c. deprived that person of a constitutional right.
d. produced an observable physical injury to the claimant.
34. Courts that have allowed the state-created danger exception apply it in one of two ways. The first way requires
(a) a special relationship between the government and the victim, plus (b):
a. a plaintiff who committed only a minor offense
b. an affirmative defense
c. a danger created by the state
d. a danger created by the plaintiff
35. Prosecutors have ___________ immunity from civil lawsuit.
a. absolute
b. qualified
c. sovereign
d. functional
36. Officials who violate the Fourth Amendment by conducting an illegal search can still receive qualified immunity for
their actions.
a. True
b. False
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
37. External civilian review results in more charges against police officers being sustained than internal review.
a. True
b. False
38. Prosecutors have qualified immunity for their conduct as advocates in the judicial phase of the criminal process.
a. True
b. False
39. Suing governmental bodies under Section 1983 is more complicated than suing individuals.
a. True
b. False
40. Police are rarely charged or convicted of criminal misconduct.
a. True
b. False
41. Aprosecutor’sappearanceincourtinsupportofanapplicationforasearchwarrantisprotectedbyqualified
immunity.
a. True
b. False
42. Under certain circumstances, law enforcement officers have a total immunity defense that protects them from
beingheldpersonallyliableforviolatingsomeone’srights.
a. True
b. False
43. The risk of vexatious litigation interfering with their official duties supports giving prosecutors absolute immunity for
their decisions associated with the judicial phase of the criminal process.
a. True
b. False
44. Most police believe internal affairs unit are necessary.
a. True
b. False
45. In order to win a Section 1983 lawsuit against a police officer, the plaintiff must prove that the officer was acting
under color of state law when he engaged in the behavior that is the subject of the suit.
a. True
b. False
46. Under the doctrine of respondeat superior, state and local governments and their agencies are liable for their
employees’tortsiftheemployeecommittedthetortduringthecourseoftheiremployment.
a. True
b. False
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
47. The government and its officers have a constitutional duty to protect individuals from other private individuals who
violate their rights.
a. True
b. False
48. Under the doctrine of sovereign immunity, governments are always immune from lawsuit.
a. True
b. False
49. Town of Castle Rock v. Gonzalez (2005) ruled that individuals have a constitutional right to have
restraining orders enforced.
a. True
b. False
50. Under the state-created danger exception to the no-duty-to-protect rule, a law enforcement officer can be held
liable under section 1983 if his actions created a special danger to the general public.
a. True
b. False
51. Money awarded to compensate someone for a violation of their rights is called ________.
52. A person who brings a suit against the government asking for a remedy is called the ______.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
53. State and local governments are responsible for the torts of their employees, if the torts are committed during the
employees’employment,underthedoctrineof__________________________.
54. Criminal justice personnel have limited limited with regard to torts under the defense of ____________
____________.
55. When individual government employees are immune for their actions, criminal justice agencies can likewise escape
liability under ____________ ________________ __________________.
56. Lawsuits against individual federal law enforcement officers for a constitutional violation are called ____________
______________.
57. Officers who violate the constitutional rights of private individuals commit a/n _________ ____________.
58. Suits under the Civil Rights Act are commonly called __________ ___________.
59. Lawsuitsmaybebroughtagainstthefederalgovernmentforfederalofficials’constitutionaltortspursuanttothe
___________ ____________ _____________ ______________.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
60. Review of complaints against police officers by participants who themselves are not police officers is called
_______________ _______________.
61. Summarize the Bivens v. Six Unnamed FBI Agents case, and explain its significance.
62. Identify the two elements of the qualified immunity defense, and explain why the test is so easy for officers to pass.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
MISCONDUCT
CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
63. Identify and describe the differences between two kinds of state civil lawsuits against individual state officers.
64. Identifytwoelementsplaintiffsin§1983actionsagainststateandlocallawenforcementofficershavetoprove.
IdentifyanddescribetwolimitsplacedbytheU.S.SupremeCourtin§1983actionsagainststateandlocal
officers.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
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CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT
65. Can you sue a judge or a prosecutor for damages resulting from actions performed in their official capacities?
Explain.
Chapter 11: CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL
MISCONDUCT
CONSTITUTIONAL VIOLATIONS II: OTHER REMEDIES AGAINST OFFICIAL MISCONDUCT