Chris DeRose (JD '05) Publishes "Beating the (False) Rap: Life After Netflix's 'Long Shot'" -- Los Angeles Magazine

Pepperdine Caruso alumnus Chris DeRose (JD '05) has published a Los Angeles Magazine article "Beating the (False) Rap: Life After Netflix's 'Long Shot'."  The article considers the case of Angeleno, Juan Catalan, who was wrongly accused of murder, and whether the police and prosecutors who put him away will face consequences.  The case is the subject of the Netflix documentary "Long Shot."

Excerpt from "Beating the (False) Rap: Life After Netflix's 'Long Shot'"

Even still, it may seem that Juan had a good case. But every such lawsuit is vulnerable to dismissal under “qualified immunity,” created by the US Supreme Court in 1982. It was no longer enough to prove police had deprived someone of their civil rights. Casselman had to show they had violated a clearly established right. Silverman, as a prosecutor, enjoyed total immunity from civil lawsuits. It looked to Casselman as though the judge might dismiss Juan’s case on grounds of qualified immunity, and he had to settle. 

The complete article many be found at Los Angeles Magazine

DeRose is a New York Times bestselling author.  He was formerly senior litigation counsel to the Arizona Attorney General, a Constitutional Law professor, and clerk of the Maricopa County Superior Court.