LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Kentucky Court of Appeals on Friday threw out a $2.25 million jury verdict for a former University of Louisville student who was wrongfully arrested by a police detective 15 years ago.
In a unanimous decision, the appeals court ruled that Tiffany Washington’s lawsuit against former Louisville Metro Police Det. Crystal Marlowe, the department and the city should have been dismissed by the trial judge because the suit was filed after the state’s one-year statute of limitations.
Washington, who was working at the school's library when she was arrested by Marlowe for robbery in 2007, filed her lawsuit in February 2010, almost two years after the criminal charges against her were dismissed in May 2008.
“Therefore, her claim for malicious prosecution was untimely, as it was filed outside of the one-year SOL period,” the appeals court ruled.
The trial judge should have dismissed the case before the jury verdict, according to the ruling.
Washington’s attorneys had argued she did not about know the totality of Marlowe’s actions until reading an investigation by The Courier-Journal in early 2010, which included a story about her case.
The newspaper reported in a series of articles that the detective arrested more than a dozen people over a two-year period who could not have committed the crimes either because they were already in jail at the time or because of other evidence that supported their innocence.
In December 2007, Marlowe issued an arrest warrant for Washington after the detective said a robbery victim was able to "positively ID" her as one of three perpetrators.
But Washington had bank statements, pictures, telephone records and eyewitness testimony showing that she was in Henderson County, 130 miles away, on the night of the robbery.
After an eight-day trial in 2019, the jury awarded Washington $2 million in compensatory damages and $250,000 in a punitive award.
Several other lawsuits that were pending against Marlowe and police were also thrown out by the appeals court Friday for the same issue.
There are a few lawsuits still pending that were filed within the statute of limitations.
Attorney Carol Petitt, who represented Marlowe, said they were pleased with the ruling.
"After a very long and difficult journey, this decision finally provides Crystal with the justice she deserves," Petitt said in a statement.
Attorney John Bahe, who represents Washington and other plaintiffs, said they will appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court.
“While we respect the court’s ruling, we are obviously disappointed for our clients,” Bahe said. “We will take the next legal steps for our clients.”
The lawsuits against Marlowe have lingered in court for years on several motions to dismiss, but the court of appeals ruled in 2017 there was enough evidence supporting the claims of malicious prosecution against Marlowe for the cases to move forward.
The court of appeals could not rule on the statute of limitation until the trial had been completed.
After her arrest, Washington spent five days in jail before her $50,000 cash bond was reduced to an amount she was able to post. A grand jury chose not to indict her.
Marlowe was fired in 2011 by former Chief Robert White for wrongfully arresting several people and is no longer in law enforcement.
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