Comment on "Qualified immunity" granted in death of mentally ill man, but questions remain

A federal appeals court ruled this week that Harris County sheriff's deputies operated within legal guidelines when they tazed and beat a schizophrenic suspect who later died, but left in question whether they were justified in beating him after he had been handcuffed. Qualified immunity is designed to protect public officials from liability as long as their action "does not violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights of which a reasonable person should have known."