The dispute centers on two encounters in July 2024. During the first stop, Marion officers Alex Jiminez and Jairiah Roberts detained Wilkerson for roughly 40 minutes under false pretenses to await a canine unit that never arrived. Before releasing the plaintiffs, those officers coordinated with other defendants—including Marion officers Nicholas Keltner and Jesse Thompson, Williamson County Sheriff Jeff Diederich, and other county employees—to maintain surveillance for a second stop.
At the second encounter, at least five police vehicles surrounded the plaintiffs’ car. Officer Jesse Thompson allegedly lied about the reason for the stop, directing that they were stopped for running a red light when they had not. Officer Krashawn Knight directed a canine to alert on the passenger door, and officers conducted a full vehicle search that yielded $3,800 and a handgun. The plaintiffs were arrested on two felony charges and jailed for three days before the charges were dropped.
Judge Rosenstengel denied the motions to dismiss regarding the plaintiffs’ federal claims for illegal search and seizure under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 (Counts II, III, VI, and VII). The court held that the plaintiffs’ allegation that all named officers agreed to surveil them for a pretextual stop was sufficient to state a plausible claim of conspiracy liability under § 1983, as the complaint alleged an agreement to deprive them of constitutional rights and overt acts in furtherance. The court noted that while the complaint did not detail each officer's specific actions at the second stop, it was possible to state a claim under this theory as to each defendant.
The court dismissed the plaintiffs’ state-law false arrest claims (Counts V and VIII) against most individual defendants without prejudice. The court found that the complaint failed to allege that officers Diederich, Ferrell, Kelly, Keltner, Jiminez, and Roberts were present at the second stop. The plaintiffs did not address these claims in their briefing, leading the court to treat the challenge as conceded.
The court also dismissed the plaintiffs’ Monell claims against the City of Marion (Count IX) and Williamson County (Count X) without prejudice. For the City of Marion, the court found the complaint lacked factual allegations of a municipal policy or custom, relying instead on conclusory legal assertions. For Williamson County, the court ruled that Sheriff Diederich’s conduct could not form the basis for county liability because he is an independently elected officer with final policymaking authority only for the sheriff’s office, not the county. The court noted that Williamson County remains an indispensable party to the action despite the dismissal of the Monell claim against it.
Judge Rosenstengel granted the plaintiffs leave to file an amended complaint by May 26, 2026.