⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

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Johnson v. Adgar — 9th Cir. (argued July 9, 2026)

No. 25-1392 Argued July 9, 2026 Published July 10, 2026; updated August 17, 2026

The Ninth Circuit reviews a civil-rights verdict from a 2020 protest in San Jose. A jury found that Officer James Adgar fired a foam baton round that struck Kyle Johnson, who had not thrown anything at police, and awarded Johnson about one point four million dollars. After the district court preserved Johnson's Fourth Amendment and California Bane Act claims, Adgar appealed. The appeal asks whether the shot was a constitutional seizure, whether the force was unreasonable, and whether existing law gave Adgar fair notice. The court will also consider whether the Bane Act's clearly delineated standard matches qualified immunity's clearly established test.

Johnson v. Adgar (No. 25-1392) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, argued July 9, 2026.

Sources
Argument audio — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit:https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/media/2026/07/09/25-1392.mp3
Argument listing — Ninth Circuit media archive:https://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/cases/streams-videos/archive?case=25-1392&hearingDate=2026-07-09
Post-trial order — U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California:https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-cand-5_21-cv-01849/pdf/USCOURTS-cand-5_21-cv-01849-7.pdf
Appeal docket — Justia Dockets:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca9/25-1392
Independent case report — KQED:https://www.kqed.org/news/12023815/man-hurt-by-san-jose-police-in-george-floyd-protests-awarded-1-3-million
Brian Patrick Eggleston — State Bar of California:https://apps.calbar.ca.gov/attorney/Licensee/Detail/289309
Brian Eggleston — federal court filing:https://cases.justia.com/federal/district-courts/california/candce/5%3A2025cv10641/461205/27/0.pdf
Abimael AJ Bastida — McManis Faulkner:https://www.mcmanislaw.com/people/lawyers/abimael-aj-bastida/
California Civil Code section 52.1 — California Legislature:https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?sectionNum=52.1.&lawCode=CIV

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