FBI SWAT Team Raids the Wrong House: Can the Family File a Lawsuit? Supreme Court to Decide.
The lead FBI agent attributes the mistake to a malfunctioning GPS device.
WASHINGTON − In the early hours of an October morning in 2017, an FBI SWAT team forcefully entered the wrong house in Atlanta, detonating a flashbang and aiming firearms at the residents before realizing their error.
The agent leading the operation stated that his GPS misdirected the team to a location just 436 feet away from where an alleged gang member was actually residing.
The affected family sought financial compensation for the distress they endured, but an appeals court ruled they could not sue the government.
On Monday, the Supreme Court agreed to review this ruling.
The family’s lawyers argue that the key question is whether Congress provided a mechanism for individuals to seek compensation for mistaken raids or other acts of negligence by federal law enforcement.
They contend that this is precisely what Congress did in 1974, prompted by incidents of mistaken home raids. The Federal Tort Claims Act was amended to allow claims against the government for various reasons, including instances of false arrest and misuse of process.
“Whatever else may be included, it is clear that mistaken raids are central to this provision,” stated a bipartisan group of lawmakers in a brief that supports the family’s appeal.
However, the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decided that the Federal Tort Claims Act does not apply when law enforcement actions involve a degree of judgment, even if that judgment was misused.
The court also cited the supremacy clause of the Constitution, which establishes the federal government as “the supreme Law of the Land,” as a barrier to the lawsuit, asserting that the errors were justifiable given the “rapidly-changing and hazardous situation” of executing a high-risk warrant at night.
When the SWAT team mistakenly entered their home, Curtrina Martin and Hilliard Toi Cliatt believed they were victims of a burglary and hid in a bedroom closet where Cliatt kept a shotgun for self-defense, according to court documents. The SWAT team forcibly removed Cliatt from the closet and placed him in handcuffs.
Martin desperately requested to be allowed to reach her seven-year-old son, who was hiding under his bed in another room.
Upon realizing they had targeted the wrong home, the SWAT team released Cliatt and departed. The lead agent later returned to apologize to Martin and Cliatt, documented the damage sustained, and provided his supervisor’s contact information. However, both residences had similar features, with split-level designs, corner lot locations, and other comparable visual characteristics.
The family asserted that the FBI denied their request for reimbursement related to the emotional distress caused by the raid, which included lost income and “years of therapy needed to cope after the event.”
“The FBI cannot erase the harm caused by mistakenly raiding the wrong home, but the government must be accountable for its error,” stated Dylan Moore, a lawyer at the Institute for Justice, representing the family. “Congress established the FTCA to offer recourse for people like Trina, Gabe, and Toi. Courts should not twist themselves to eliminate that recourse.”
The case, Martin v. U.S., is anticipated to be argued this spring, with a ruling expected by summer.
(This report was updated to correct a typing error.)
