Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Iowa

On June 13, 2011 I awoke to a loud disturbance between my upstairs neighbor and another woman yelling and arguing. The non-tenant left the premises and ten minutes later the police were at my door and arrested me for Disorderly Conduct...without letting me explain that it was not me. The tenant upstairs involved in the disturbance tried to tell them that it was not me...they told her to get back inside and they would deal with her later. I was booked into jail and photographed. One hour later the arresting Officer came and said, "Sorry, we had misinformation from a witness who 100% guaranteed it was you...we'll take you home now!" This witness finally stated that she never actually saw me. Now, this is on the state record showing dismissed and my name was published in the paper being arrested for Disorderly Conduct. The did arrest the woman who was causing the disturbance, but her name never appeared in the paper. Do I have any legal recourse against the police dept. for false arrest? I have spoken with the County Attorney, only to get another apology for the misunderstanding.


Asked on 6/16/11, 8:56 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Luedeman solo practitioner

If the police legitimately had cause to arrest you even though that arrest turned out to be erroneous and they then let you go, then there is no false arrest-in fact, it seems that a witness lied to them. If your record is otherwise clean it might be worth taking things up with an attorney, but be advised it is not going to be cheap and the results are uncertain.

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Answered on 6/21/11, 8:13 am


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