By Andrew Chung

(Reuters) – Police officers representing separate states in California and Oklahoma applied to the U.S. Supreme Court for legal protection. They sought it under a doctrine known “qualified immunity.” This protects them from any lawsuits that might accuse them of excessive force.

Justices overturned the lower court’s ruling allowing for a trial against Brandon Vick and Josh Girdner in a suit over the death of a Tahlequah man, Oklahoma-wielder.

A lower court had denied Daniel RivasVillegas’s request for qualified immunity from Union City police officers was also overturned. Rivas-Villegas is being accused of excessive force in handcuffing suspects.

These brief rulings in favor of the police were not signed and there was no public opposition from the justices. They were published in cases which were resolved without oral arguments.

Qualified immunity protects government officers and police from civil lawsuits in some circumstances. However, it does not allow for the filing of lawsuits if an individual has violated their constitutional or statutory rights.

The Monday decisions show that justices believe lower courts deny qualified immunity in excess force cases involving officers too often. They have previously criticised appeals courts for this issue in the past.

Reuters published a 2020 investigation which revealed that police officers can kill and injure innocent civilians without fear of prosecution.