In what circumstances will a police officer be held liable for excessive force, improper search and excessive force by two officers during a traffic stop?

The police officers in this case appear to have chosen the wrong young people. Two African American teens and a white teen were innocently driving through the City of Torrance, happily and quietly celebrating their graduation from prep school. For no good reason, two police officers stopped their car without probable cause or reasonable suspicion, conducted an illegal search of the vehicle, and used degrading and excessive force on the young boys. Such is not an isolated incident in the Greater Los Angeles area, or across the country. See, e.g., Washington v. Lambert , 98 F.3d 1181, 1187-88 (9th Cir. 1996) (discussing studies documenting traffic stops and police harassment of African American and Hispanic males). This time, however, the youngsters had the wherewithal and families with the legal knowledge and economic resources to seek justice for the wrongs committed. The defendants received a fair and impartial trial. In recognition of the officers' wrongdoing, the jury awarded the plaintiffs not only compensatory but also punitive damages. The defendants have given us no reason to doubt the correctness of the jury's determination.