A black pastor was arrested when he was watering his neighbor's flowers (7 photos + 2 videos)
An instructive story from Alabama: police officers responded to a 911 call about a "strange man" watering flowers with a hose outside someone else's house. The man said that he was a local pastor, everyone knew him, and he was watering the flowers at the request of his friend. However, for some reason, he was taken away in handcuffs. 
And now, two years later, justice has prevailed.
A federal appeals court has ruled that three Childersburg, Alabama, police officers illegally arrested Pastor Michael Jennings while he was watering flowers outside a neighbor's home in May 2022. 
The incident occurred when a neighbor (a white woman) called police to report a "strange man" on the property.
When officers arrived, they arrested Jennings, even though the same neighbor suddenly recognized him and confirmed that he lived next door and was house-sitting for a friend who was out of town. It turns out she didn't realize it was Jennings at first. 
Video footage shows police yelling at the man and arresting him, even though he explains he was just watering his neighbor's flowers.
Jennings, who previously worked in law enforcement, refused to show identification because he had not committed any crime and was on private property.
The court ruled that the officers did not have probable cause to arrest them and could not claim qualified immunity, which protects officers from civil liability.
Qualified immunity only applies when the officers' actions do not violate a clearly established right of an individual that they should have known about. In this case, the court ruled that the officers' actions violated Jennings' rights.
A neighbor named Amanda confirmed to the police that the pastor and the owner of the house were indeed friends. But they weren't convinced
Jennings sued, arguing that his arrest violated his constitutional rights, including freedom of movement and equal protection. The court agreed with him and overturned a lower court that had previously dismissed Jennings' lawsuit on the grounds of qualified immunity.
Jennings' attorney said it was an important victory that shows police officers can't abuse their power and violate people's rights even if they're wearing a badge. He said the ruling could impact other Alabama civil rights cases.
Jennings, who pastors a small church in Sylacauga, said he felt "anger and fear" during his arrest because of recent police violence against black people. But he did not resist, fearing he would be shot.
Jennings' neighbors expressed regret over the incident and said he was a good man who never got into trouble.
