Civil Rights Appellate Clinic files amicus brief in support of Jordan Brown appeal

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.—The Penn State Dickinson Law Civil Rights Appellate Clinic, representing the National Police Accountability Project (NPAP), filed an amicus curiae brief in support of the petitioner-plaintiff Jordan Brown in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on June 16, 2026.

Brown, who was 11 at the time he was accused of killing his father’s partner, was adjudicated delinquent and spent his childhood in detention. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ultimately vacated his adjudication for lack of evidence.

Brown sued the police troopers involved in his case for malicious prosecution and fabrication of evidence used to support a probable cause finding. A jury found no constitutional violation, and the District Judge denied Brown’s motion to set aside the jury verdict or grant a new trial. Brown argued at trial that because uncontested facts showed that the troopers fabricated evidence to establish probable cause, those elements of Brown’s claims should have been decided as a matter of law and not sent to the jury.

The Civil Rights Appellate Clinic researched and drafted the amicus brief in support of Brown, arguing that an honest and fair probable cause finding is essential to guaranteeing the Fourth Amendment’s protections against false arrest and malicious prosecution. It further argued that if the uncontested facts show the probable cause affidavit was fabricated, the judge should rule on this as a matter of law and not send that issue to the jury. To do otherwise, the brief pointed out, would undermine the integrity of the criminal justice system.

Under the guidance of Clinic Director and Clinical Professor of Law Michael Foreman, nine second- and third-year clinical students worked on the brief: Katherine Bobchin, Hibah Hasan, Mackenzie Junjulas, Trinity MacArthur, Lyn Mungin, Katie Pricer, Kiera Stubbs, Connor Thornton and Catherine Weatherly. For these students, drafting the amicus brief was deeply impactful.

“Our criminal justice system depends on fair probable cause findings based on complete and honest information from the police,” said Stubbs. “When a probable cause determination is made because of misleading or false information, the Fourth Amendment is violated, and everyone loses trust in the system. I’m grateful for the opportunity to advocate for fair and just prosecution and the protection of our essential Fourth Amendment rights.”

“To ensure our criminal justice system works and the rights of all remain protected, probable cause determinations must be fair and honest,” said Pricer. “Our system doesn’t work if probable cause determinations can be based on falsities or material omissions, which is why it was an honor and an incredibly impactful experience to work on and help draft an amicus brief in the Brown case.”