Missouri Court of Appeals, Eastern District / May 14, 2019
Michael Holmes, Respondent, vs. Doug Nelson, et al., Appellants.
Michael Holmes filed a declaratory judgment action to determine whether the State of Missouri or the City of St. Louis was responsible for paying a $2.5 million federal civil rights judgment awarded to him against two St. Louis police officers. The trial court granted summary judgment for Holmes, finding the State was required to indemnify the officers through the State Legal Expense Fund (SLEF). The appellate court affirmed, holding that the 2003 version of the SLEF statute applied to the officers' misconduct, which occurred in 2003, and that applying the 2005 amendments retrospectively would be unconstitutional. The court further found the State was required to indemnify, not merely reimburse, the officers.