Does the doctrine of qualified immunity shield a police officer from suit

QUESTIONS PRESENTED Does the doctrine of qualified immunity shield a police officer from suit (not merely from judgment) where his/her split-second decision to deploy lethal force was made after being confronted by a suspect who, while disregarding commands to get on the ground, pulls a semi-automatic handgun from his waistband just feet away from the officer? In this matter, three plain clothes Detectives of the Schenectady Police Department were seated in a van in a high crime neighborhood preparing for a controlled narcotics buy when an unknown male confronted them on evening of June 13, 2016, telling them to get off his street. After the Detective in the driver’s seat verbally placated the male, he proceeded to the front of the van where he lifted his shirt revealing a 9MM semi-automatic handgun tucked in his rear waistband and grabbed the handle with his right hand. During the next five (5) seconds, two Detectives exited the van, drew their weapons, exposed their badges and yelled three (3) commands for the male to get on the ground. The male suspect did not comply with any of the commands while crossing the street. Instead, he reached back with his right hand and pulled the handgun from his shorts prompting the Detective who was in the middle of the street nearest the male suspect (Petitioner herein) to fire six shots, one of which struck the male suspect in the back of the head. ii The questions presented are: 1. Does the Fourth Amendment require a police officer to wait until an armed suspect points the barrel of his handgun in the officer’s direction before the officer can deploy lethal force to protect himself and innocents in the area? 2. Did the Second Circuit err in denying Petitioner qualified immunity without even identifying what material facts defined the immunity questions? 3. Did the Second Circuit err in deferring the qualified immunity questions to the “post-verdict” stage of the trial so that immunity would only be addressed in the event a jury issued a verdict against Petitioner? 4. Did the Second Circuit’s decision below disregard this Court’s repeated holdings that qualified immunity is immunity from suit, not merely immunity from judgment, when it declined to define or decide the immunity questions despite a robust record containing undisputed facts?