qualified immunity
noun
law
: immunity from civil liability that is conditioned or limited (as by a requirement of good faith or due care)
especially
: immunity from lawsuits that is granted to public officials (such as police officers) for acts that violate someone's civil rights if it can be shown that the acts do not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person would be aware
An officer conducting a search is entitled to qualified immunity where clearly established law does not show that the search violated the Fourth Amendment. —
Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223 (2009)
Pearson v. Callahan, 555 U.S. 223 (2009) Wayne Jones's family won a small victory this month when the federal Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the officers involved in his killing could not claim qualified immunity. —Hailey Fuchs
Hailey Fuchs By bypassing qualified immunity, but paying out judgments assessed against the officers, Colorado's new law ensures that victims are made whole and that good cops aren't deterred from doing their jobs. —Nick Sibilla
Nick Sibilla Examples of qualified immunity in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Bailey has filed for qualified immunity in the lawsuit.
—Emma Tucker, CNN, 17 Mar. 2024
The phrase, seemingly deleted in error, undermines the basis for qualified immunity, the legal shield that protects police officers from suits for misconduct.
—Adam Liptak, New York Times, 15 May 2023
Braun has repeatedly said that his bill was an attempt to compromise: Democrats were prepared to eliminate qualified immunity altogether.
—Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 28 Mar. 2024
Such pushback has prompted Cushman’s group to focus on ensuring the implementation and maintenance of its prior gains, rather than advocating for broader changes like ending qualified immunity, a legal framework that protects law enforcement officers from civil liability for their actions.
—Tom Jackman, Washington Post, 10 Mar. 2024
But federal cases have become difficult to pursue, in part because of the legal doctrine known as qualified immunity, which shields officials, including police, from lawsuits seeking monetary damages as a result of actions taken during the course of their jobs.
—Antonio Planas, NBC News, 5 Mar. 2024
Also spurred by the 2019 case of medics killing 23-year-old Aurora, Colo., man Elijah McClain, Colorado in 2021 became the first state to eliminate qualified immunity protections for police officers.
—Ben Brasch, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024
Allegations of First Amendment violations appear in about one in five qualified immunity appeals.
—Andrew Wimer, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
In June, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that two of the defendants, including Moffet-Massey and another UIA employee, deserved qualified immunity from the suit, effectively ending the case against the former UIA officials.
—Detroit Free Press, 24 Jan. 2024
Emma Tucker, CNN, 17 Mar. 2024
The phrase, seemingly deleted in error, undermines the basis for qualified immunity, the legal shield that protects police officers from suits for misconduct.
—Adam Liptak, New York Times, 15 May 2023
Braun has repeatedly said that his bill was an attempt to compromise: Democrats were prepared to eliminate qualified immunity altogether.
—Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 28 Mar. 2024
Such pushback has prompted Cushman’s group to focus on ensuring the implementation and maintenance of its prior gains, rather than advocating for broader changes like ending qualified immunity, a legal framework that protects law enforcement officers from civil liability for their actions.
—Tom Jackman, Washington Post, 10 Mar. 2024
But federal cases have become difficult to pursue, in part because of the legal doctrine known as qualified immunity, which shields officials, including police, from lawsuits seeking monetary damages as a result of actions taken during the course of their jobs.
—Antonio Planas, NBC News, 5 Mar. 2024
Also spurred by the 2019 case of medics killing 23-year-old Aurora, Colo., man Elijah McClain, Colorado in 2021 became the first state to eliminate qualified immunity protections for police officers.
—Ben Brasch, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024
Allegations of First Amendment violations appear in about one in five qualified immunity appeals.
—Andrew Wimer, Forbes, 13 Feb. 2024
In June, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that two of the defendants, including Moffet-Massey and another UIA employee, deserved qualified immunity from the suit, effectively ending the case against the former UIA officials.
—Detroit Free Press, 24 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'qualified immunity.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near qualified immunity
Cite this Entry
“Qualified immunity.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/qualified%20immunity. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share