{"ID":63759,"name":"Martin v. 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The intended target was a nearby home suspected to contain violent gang member Joseph Riley. Due to similarities between the two properties and issues with navigating to the correct address, the agents entered Martin\u2019s home instead. The SWAT team, in full tactical gear, entered the house, causing fear and distress to its occupants. They later realized the mistake and promptly left the scene, later apologizing and assuring the family that the FBI would handle any damages.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMartin and her family sued the U.S. government and the agents, claiming violations of their Fourth Amendment rights and seeking damages under Georgia state law. The district court granted summary judgment for the defendants. On appeal, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the decision, ruling that the agents were entitled to qualified immunity and that the Federal Tort Claims Act claims were barred by the Supremacy Clause and the discretionary function exception.\u003C\/p\u003E\n","question":"\u003Cp\u003E1. Does the Supremacy Clause prevent individuals from suing the federal government under the Federal Tort Claims Act when federal employees\u2019 actions, even if negligent or wrongful, are related to carrying out federal policy and can be interpreted as following federal laws?\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E2. Is the discretionary-function exception, which usually protects the government from being sued for certain decisions made by its employees, always inapplicable when dealing with claims related to law enforcement officers\u2019 actions that fall under the intentional torts category?\u003C\/p\u003E\n","conclusion":"\u003Cp\u003EThe Supremacy Clause does not afford the United States a defense in a suit against it under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C. \u00a7 2671 et seq., and the law enforcement proviso in \u00a72680(h) of the FTCA overrides only the intentional-tort exception in that subsection, not the discretionary-function exception or other exceptions throughout \u00a7 2680. Justice Neil Gorsuch authored the unanimous opinion of the Court.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThe proviso\u2019s placement within subsection (h) demonstrates its limited scope. Section 2680 contains 13 discrete exceptions to the Federal Tort Claims Act\u0027s sovereign immunity waiver, each forming a separate sentence when combined with the lead-in clause. The law enforcement proviso appears within the same subsection and sentence as the intentional-tort exception, addressing the same subject matter\u2014intentional torts\u2014while other exceptions cover entirely different topics like lost mail, combat injuries, and quarantine impositions. The proviso\u2019s definitional sentence expressly limits the definition of \u201cinvestigative or law enforcement officer\u201d to \u201cthis subsection,\u201d even though the phrase \u201claw enforcement officer\u201d appears elsewhere in \u00a72680. Congress\u2019s choice to embed the proviso within subsection (h) rather than place it at the end of all exceptions confirms its application to subsection (h) alone.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFurthermore, the Supremacy Clause does not afford the United States a defense in FTCA suits. The FTCA serves as the supreme federal law governing the United States\u2019 tort liability and makes the government liable under state law on the same terms as a private individual. Because the FTCA incorporates state law as the liability standard, there is typically no conflict between federal and state law for the Supremacy Clause to resolve. While federal law may sometimes displace state law where constitutional text or federal statute supplies controlling liability rules, the Eleventh Circuit identified no such provision displacing Georgia tort law. The court\u2019s reliance on In re Neagle was misplaced, as that 19th-century decision involved federal officer immunity from state criminal prosecution, not the federal government\u0027s liability under a statute that expressly subjects it to state tort law.\u003C\/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EJustice Sonia Sotomayor authored a concurring opinion, joined by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, emphasizing that the Eleventh Circuit\u2019s test for the discretionary-function exception deviates from controlling precedent and highlighting that the exception may not shield careless conduct like that alleged in the mistaken raid at issue.\u003C\/p\u003E\n","advocates":[{"advocate":{"ID":63292,"name":"Patrick M. 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