Richard Thivener v. Andrew Nero

── Richard Thivener v. Andrew Nero ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Date: April 29, 2026 Category: General NOT PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THIRD CIRCUIT No. 25-2240 RICHARD THIVENER, Appellant v. ANDREW NERO, PETER LARGEY, THOMAS NICKLAS, GREGG MCMANUS, PHILIP HOH, MICHELLE MUCCIO, THOMAS COPPOLO, ANTHONY PISTNER, COUNTY OF ELK Appeal from United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania (District Court No. 1:22-cv-00238) District Judge: Honorable Cathy Bissoon Submitted under Third Circuit L.A.R. 34.1(a) March 26, 2026 Before: HARDIMAN, SCIRICA, and AMBRO, Circuit Judges (Opinion filed: April 29, 2026)  ___________ OPINION * ___________ AMBRO, Circuit Judge The District Attorney’s Office in Elk County, Pennsylvania charged Richard Thivener with homicide, drug delivery resulting in death, and reckless endangerment after he confessed to killing his wife, Jessica Thivener. Its Court of Common Pleas suppressed the evidence of his confession and dismissed the charges without prejudice. Thivener brought this action against the state officials responsible for investigating and prosecuting him. His complaint alleges that officers unlawfully coerced his confession, seized evidence from his home in violation of the Fourth Amendment, and arrested and charged him without probable cause. The United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania granted summary judgment for the defendants on all claims. Thivener appealed. For the reasons that follow, we affirm. I In the early morning hours of July 26, 2020, Thivener sent a text message to Wendy Catalano—the mother of his wife, Jessica—stating that “Jess[ica] and I have committed suicide together.” App. 543a. The message instructed Catalano to “come find us before the kids wake up.” Id. Catalano rushed to the Thiveners’ home. When she arrived, she * This disposition is not an opinion of the full Court and pursuant to I.O.P. 5.7 does not constitute binding precedent. 2 discovered her daughter’s lifeless body on the bed in the master bedroom. She was fully naked except for a bra that was pulled up, revealing her breasts. Her legs were spread open, her underwear was on the floor, and two bottles of sexual lubricant were next to the bed where Jessica lay. She had spots of blood and lubricant on her body. Thivener was still alive, laying on the bed next to Jessica’s body. Catalano called the police. Chief Thomas Nicklas and Sergeant Peter Largey of the City of St. Mary’s Police Department responded to the call. Chief Nicklas remained near the home’s front door to monitor who entered and left while Sergeant Largey went to the master bedroom. The latter testified that he observed Thivener “laying on his side” with his eyes closed, and that he would “periodically” open them to “glar[e]” at Jessica. App. 594a. EMS personnel arrived shortly thereafter to treat Thivener. He was generally non-responsive to their questions, stating only that he had taken “medicine” that night. App. 619a. They removed him from the bedroom and took him to the hospital. Sergeant Largey called Patrolman Andrew Nero to process the scene. When Nero arrived, he and Largey disagreed about whether they should seek a warrant before searching the home. Nero testified that their “focus” at that point was to determine which medications Thivener had taken that night so they could give the information to the medical professionals treating him. App. 627a. The officers called Elk County District Attorney Thomas Coppolo to ask how they should proceed. He told them to “process the scene.” App. 497, 4056. Th