Fahirri Dannah v. City of Grand Rapids

── Fahirri Dannah v. City of Grand Rapids ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Date: May 29, 2026 Category: General RECOMMENDED FOR PUBLICATION Pursuant to Sixth Circuit I.O.P. 32.1(b) File Name: 26a0160p.06 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT ┐ FAHIRRI DANNAH, │ Plaintiff-Appellee, │ │ v. │ > No. 25-1416 │ CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN, et al., │ Defendants, │ │ │ ANTHONY BARBERINO, ZACHARY KAISER, and │ MELISSA MONINGER, in their individual capacities, │ Defendants-Appellants. │ ┘ Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan at Grand Rapids. No. 1:22-cv-00385—Ray S. Kent, Magistrate Judge. Decided and Filed: May 29, 2026 Before: SUTTON, Chief Judge; LARSEN and MURPHY, Circuit Judges. _________________ COUNSEL ON BRIEF: Sarah J. Hartman, Elizabeth J. Fossel, GRAND RAPIDS DEPARTMENT OF LAW, Grand Rapids, Michigan, for Appellants. Michael L. Jones, MARKO LAW, PLLC, Detroit, Michigan, for Appellee. _________________ OPINION _________________ SUTTON, Chief Judge. A Grand Rapids police officer frisked Fahirri Dannah during a traffic stop. Before the officer could complete the pat down, Dannah twisted away and started to  No. 25-1416 Dannah v. City of Grand Rapids et al. Page 2 run. Officers tackled him and wrestled with him until they could place handcuffs on him. Dannah filed this § 1983 action against several of the officers. The district court rejected the officers’ qualified-immunity defense, reasoning that a jury could find that they violated Dannah’s clearly established Fourth Amendment rights. Because the officers did not violate any clearly established law, we reverse. I. On the night of November 16, 2019, as Dannah and his girlfriend drove to a Taco Bell, officers stopped the vehicle for a traffic infraction. Dannah’s girlfriend, the driver, gave the officers permission to search her car. Officer Zachary Kaiser asked Dannah to exit the vehicle before the officers conducted the search. As Dannah emerged from the vehicle, Officer Kaiser asked him to place his hands on top of his head and face away. Dannah, facing toward Officer Kaiser, moved his arms toward his waist and lifted his shirt, insisting that he did not have any weapons. Officer Kaiser again asked Dannah to place his hands on his head, nudging his arm upwards. Dannah, upset, moved an arm down, and Officer Kaiser grasped it and pulled it up toward Dannah’s head. Dannah and Officer Kaiser walked a few steps away to a police cruiser. As they stopped, Dannah moved his hands back to his waist again. Officer Kaiser said, “Hey—we’ve got to pat you down first, okay. Hands on top of your head,” and nudged Dannah’s arms back toward his head. R.85-7 at 11:07–14. Officer Kaiser asked Dannah whether there were any items he needed to know about. Dannah insisted that he did not have