No. 25-1413October Term 2025Petition Pending
Benjamin M. Bauer, Petitioner v. Anne Elizabeth Alma Marks
Benjamin Bauer, an officer, seeks qualified immunity after using a less-lethal projectile during a riot to stop a man who was allegedly assaulting another officer and trying to take the officer’s baton while a medical evacuation was underway.
Case status
- Current stage
- Petition Pending
- Latest event
- Petition pending
- Decision timing
- No decision timeline until the Court agrees to hear the case.
- What it's about
Benjamin Bauer, an officer, seeks qualified immunity after using a less-lethal projectile during a riot to stop a man who was allegedly assaulting another officer and trying to take the officer’s baton while a medical evacuation was underway. The case asks whether the Eighth Circuit properly denied immunity after the Supreme Court had directed it to reconsider the case under Barnes v. Felix, which requires courts to evaluate the full circumstances of a use of force rather than only the moment force was used.
Question presented
Whether the law clearly established that the officer’s use of a less-lethal projectile, under the totality of the circumstances, constituted an unreasonable use of force in violation of the Fourth Amendment?
- Case path
United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit / Petition pending
- Area
Petition for review pending
Briefing
What it's about
Officer Benjamin Bauer is asking the Supreme Court to review an Eighth Circuit decision denying him qualified immunity after he used a less-lethal projectile during a riot. The dispute is whether the Fourth Amendment required courts to weigh the entire emergency, rather than focusing only on the instant the projectile was fired.
Argument
The case is pending on a petition for certiorari (the Court's decision whether to hear a case), and oral argument has not been scheduled. Bauer argues that the Eighth Circuit improperly narrowed its review to the precise moment force was used rather than the full circumstances.
Impact
The case could affect officers responding to fast-moving violence, including whether they can be personally liable for split-second force decisions. It also affects people struck by less-lethal force and their ability to bring Fourth Amendment claims.
What is at stake in Bauer v. Marks?
The Court is being asked to decide whether the full emergency must be considered when judging an officer's use of less-lethal force.
Who could be affected by Bauer's qualified-immunity case?
Officers making force decisions during violent emergencies and people injured by less-lethal projectiles could be affected by the Court's approach.
What happens next in Bauer v. Marks?
The Court may decide whether to grant certiorari, meaning it will hear the case. No oral argument has been scheduled.
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Sep 3, 2026
- Method
- Methodology