In District of Columbia v. R.W., 608 U.S. ___ (2026), the Supreme Court of the United States affirmed that when courts are tasked with assessing whether a police officer had reasonable suspicion, the court must consider the totality of the circumstances, which precludes evaluating and rejecting individual factors in isolation from each other. 

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently issued an opinion in Lewis v. Delgado, 163 F.4th 926 (5th Cir. 2026), a case that considers when officers are entitled to qualified immunity for briefly handcuffing a person with a medical condition during a high-risk stop. The Fifth Circuit held that, even if the officers knew about Lewis’s condition beforehand, their actions did not violate clearly established law under the circumstances.​​​​​​​​

The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently examined United States v. Felton, 159 F.4th 1128 (7th Cir. 2025), addressing whether an affidavit established probable cause for a GPS tracking warrant when the affidavit relied heavily on a confidential informant’s tip and omitted key information about the informant’s credibility.

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The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently decided Byers v. Painter, 173 F.4th 155 (4th Cir. 2026), a case examining the limits of qualified immunity when an officer uses deadly force against an armed but nonthreatening suspect who is fleeing. The court held that, at the time of the encounter, clearly established law prohibited the use of deadly force against an armed suspect who did not pose an immediate threat.​​​​

The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit recently released an opinion in United States v. Erving, a case that highlights the circumstances under which a protective vehicle search is permissible under the Fourth Amendment. The court examined whether the officer had reasonable suspicion that Erving was dangerous and could gain immediate control of a weapon.​

In United States v. Thorne, No. 23-3054 (D.C. Cir. 2026), the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit highlighted Fourth Amendment considerations that arise when officers use GPS-ping data and cell-site simulator technology to locate a wanted suspect, as well as the application of the good-faith exception when officers reasonably rely on a warrant in good faith.

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