SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A federal judge has dismissed former Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff’s $80 million civil rights lawsuit finding those who investigated and charged him with public corruption six years ago cannot be sued for doing their jobs.
Shurtleff, 62, has not decided if he is going to appeal the decision, he said.
All criminal charges, including bribery, against Shurtleff were dismissed in 2016 and he accepted a $600,000 settlement from the state to pay for legal fees accrued during the case, officials said.
The settlement, alleging damage remained after the charges were dropped, did not end litigation filed in federal court against the FBI and state prosecutors, officials said.
Shurtleff did not show how federal agents used excessive force during a search of home or prove that we was arrested and charged without probable cause, U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups said in a Friday ruling.
The $80 million “wasn’t an outrageous amount” considering Shurtleff’s earning potential as private lawyer, loss of reputation and his daughter’s PTSD, and to “really punish law enforcement if they violated your rights,” Shurtleff told the Deseret News.
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