A Colorado family whose home was destroyed by police trying to capture an armed suspected shoplifter is pressing on with a lawsuit for damages after losing a round in a federal appeals court.
Courts tend to resist awarding damages to individuals injured by police doing their jobs, on the theory that it unduly burdens enforcement of the law. In this case, the court found that a government may destroy someone’s home without paying compensation, provided that it’s acting under its police power rather than the power of eminent domain. The case is important, according to the family’s lawyers, because the appeals court ignored binding Supreme Court precedent.
