Daniel v. State

Bronzel Daniel appeals a jury verdict which rejected his claim for damages resulting from his allegedly false arrest by two Washington state patrolmen. He assigns error to several of the Superior Court's rulings on jury instructions, most notably to the court's decision to take from the jury the question of the lawfulness of his arrest. We hold this decision constituted error and, therefore, reverse the judgment.

At approximately noon on April 12, 1978, Washington State Patrol troopers Michael Fox and Melvin Utterback observed Mr. Daniel sitting in some sagebrush about 50 to 75 feet off the…