Monell Liability

Mental State Standard: Deliberate Indifference (for Failure to Train/Supervise)

The mental state standard for Monell depends on which theory you’re using. For official policy or final policymaker claims, no separate mental state is required — the policy itself is the violation. But for failure to train or failure to supervise claims, you must show deliberate indifference: the municipality knew its training or supervision was inadequate and that the deficiency was likely to result in constitutional violations, yet chose to do nothing. City of Canton v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378 (1989).

See State of Mind Requirements for how this compares to other § 1983 claims.

What It Is

Monell liability is the doctrine that allows municipalities (cities, counties, school districts) to be sued under § 1983. It comes from Monell v. Department of Social Services, 436 U.S. 658 (1978), which overruled part of Monroe v. Pape and held that local governments are “persons” under § 1983.

But there’s a catch. A big one.

The Policy-or-Custom Requirement

You can’t sue a city just because its employee violated your rights. There’s no respondeat superior — no automatic “the employer is liable for the employee’s actions” — in § 1983.

To hold a municipality liable, you must show the violation resulted from:

1. An official policy — A formally adopted rule, regulation, or decision
2. A widespread custom or practice — Conduct so common and well-established that it effectively represents official policy, even without formal adoption
3. A decision by a final policymaker — A single decision by someone with final authority over the relevant area
4. Failure to train or supervise — amounting to deliberate indifference to constitutional rights

Why It’s Hard

Each path requires significant evidence:

• Official policy: Easy to identify if it exists. Harder if the unconstitutional practice is informal.
• Custom or practice: You typically need to show multiple prior incidents of similar misconduct. One incident usually isn’t enough.
• Final policymaker: You must identify who has final decision-making authority under state law — not just who supervised the officer.
• Failure to train: After City of Canton v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378 (1989), you must show the training deficiency is so obvious that the municipality was deliberately indifferent to the risk.

Most pro se plaintiffs try the “custom or practice” route. The problem: you need evidence of other incidents, which usually requires discovery. But defendants raise Monell at the motion to dismiss stage — before you get discovery.

The Practical Reality

Cities know this doctrine protects them. Their typical strategy:

1. Argue qualified immunity for the individual officers
2. Argue no Monell liability for the city because you can’t show a “policy or custom” from your complaint alone
3. Win on one or both and avoid a jury trial

Your counter: plead specific facts. Name the policymakers. Reference prior incidents if you know about them. Cite any public records — news reports, prior lawsuits, DOJ investigations — showing a pattern.

Key Cases

• Monell v. Dep’t of Social Services, 436 U.S. 658 (1978) — Municipalities are “persons” under § 1983
• City of Canton v. Harris, 489 U.S. 378 (1989) — Failure to train requires deliberate indifference
• Pembaur v. City of Cincinnati, 475 U.S. 469 (1986) — Single decision by final policymaker can establish Monell
• Connick v. Thompson, 563 U.S. 51 (2011) — Narrowed failure-to-train liability; single Brady violation insufficient