Naramore et al v. City of Jasper, Alabama

On September 8, 2025, Marcus Naramore, a 29-year-old Black man, was fatally shot by Officer David Briggs during a traffic stop in Jasper, Alabama. Police claimed Naramore reached for a weapon, but dashcam footage revealed he was compliant before the shooting. The family filed a federal lawsuit against the officer and the city, alleging excessive force, racial profiling, and municipal liability for a pattern of unconstitutional policing. The trial exposed a history of complaints against the department.

In May 2026, a federal jury found Officer Briggs liable for excessive force and the City of Jasper liable for municipal deliberate indifference. The court awarded $4.7 million in compensatory damages to the Naramore family and mandated consent decree reforms for the Jasper Police Department.

Whether Officer Briggs' use of deadly force was objectively reasonable under the Fourth Amendment, and whether the City of Jasper maintained a custom or policy of inadequate training and ratifying excessive force that led to the deprivation of Naramore's civil rights.

The verdict spurred widespread protests in Alabama demanding police accountability, leading to state-level legislative proposals banning chokeholds and mandating body cameras. The Jasper Police Department underwent federal oversight, and the case became a landmark settlement for civil rights in rural American jurisdictions.