To Trial!

After the panel majority’s decision in Ford v. McKesson, a long-running case is headed for trial. Officer John Ford sued DeRay Mckesson, alleging that he was injured during a protest led by McKesson.

The majority held that summary judgment was improper because a jury could reasonably find for Ford on each part of his Louisiana negligence claim. In the court’s view, the record contains enough evidence for a jury to decide whether Mckesson helped organize and lead the Baton Rouge protest, whether he did so in a way that foreseeably created a violent confrontation with police, and whether that conduct was a but-for cause of Ford’s injuries. The court also rejected the argument that the First Amendment bars the case from reaching trial.

A dissented argued that the plaintiff’s proof, whatever may have been enough at the pleading stage, is too thin at summary judgment. In her view, the majority stacks inference upon inference about Mckesson’s role, causation, and the identity of the rock-thrower. She also warned that allowing the case to proceed risks chilling protest activity by turning disorderly reactions of others (a “heckler’s veto”) into a basis for speaker liability. No. 24-30494 (March 19, 2026).