Mark Davis v. James DiStephano

── Mark Davis v. James DiStephano ── Case No.: 25-11743 Court: Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit Date: March 24, 2026 Category: NEW USCA11 Case: 25-11743 Document: 20-1 Date Filed: 03/24/2026 Page: 1 of 14 NOT FOR PUBLICATION In the United States Court of Appeals For the Eleventh Circuit ____________________ No. 25-11743 Non-Argument Calendar ____________________ MARK D. DAVIS, Plaintiff-Appellant, versus JAMES DISTEPHANO, CHRISTINA KEETON, DANNY WESSON, Defendants-Appellees. ____________________ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama D.C. Docket No. 3:23-cv-00581-HNJ ____________________ Before JORDAN, ROSENBAUM, and WILSON, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: USCA11 Case: 25-11743 Document: 20-1 Date Filed: 03/24/2026 Page: 2 of 14 2 Opinion of the Court 25-11743 Mark Davis, proceeding pro se on appeal, appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment on his claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and state law alleging false arrest, malicious prosecution, and conspiracy. The district court found that Davis’s claims failed because he was lawfully seized pursuant to a valid warrant sup- ported by probable cause. We agree that probable cause supported Davis’s arrest, so we affirm the grant of summary judgment. I. On October 4, 2020, Lauderdale County deputies responded to a domestic disturbance at Davis’s residence. The deputies ob- tained oral and written statements indicating that a physical alter- cation occurred between Davis and his 18-year-old daughter, Katie, when Katie went to gather items from the home to stay a second night at the home of her boyfriend, whom Davis did not like. At some point, Defendant Danny Wesson, the boyfriend’s grandfa- ther, arrived outside the home while the deputies were present and threatened to harm Davis. No one was arrested at the scene. One deputy told Katie that, if she wanted to pursue charges, she should go to the Sheriff’s Office and meet with investigators in the Special Victims Unit (“SVU”). Deputy Jason Brown prepared a short report after the inci- dent. He explained that he responded to a “domestic between fa- ther and daughter” and spoke with and obtained written state- ments from the parties. Both Davis and Katie claimed the other was the aggressor. Davis said that Katie “became violent toward him hitting him and he tried to restrain her,” while Katie alleged USCA11 Case: 25-11743 Document: 20-1 Date Filed: 03/24/2026 Page: 3 of 14 25-11743 Opinion of the Court 3 that Davis “became violent toward her hitting her and put his hands around her neck.” Deputy Brown noted that he “observed a mark on the father’s arm and no marks or bruising on the daugh- ter Katie’s neck, arm or legs.” The next day, Katie, her boyfriend, and his mother went to the Sheriff’s Office’s SVU, where Defendants James DiStefano1 and Christina Keeton worked. When DiStefano saw them arrive, he directed Keeton to handle the interviews because his wife was re- lated to the boyfriend’s family. Keeton then interviewed Katie and her boyfriend. Keeton also watched body camera footage from the responding dep