ESTATE OF AMARO v. City of Oakland

OPINION

BEA, Circuit Judge:

This interlocutory appeal requires us to resolve only the following question certified by the district court: whether the doctrine of equitable estoppel should apply where a plaintiff believes she has a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claim but is dissuaded from bringing the claim by affirmative misrepresentations and stonewalling by the police. We hold that the equitable doctrine does apply in such a context and affirm the district court’s holding on that legal question. 1

Background

On March 23, 2000, Jerry Amaro — a 36-year old Oakland resident — was arrested during a reverse drug…