Darius Rice’s lawsuit against Sheriff Tinsley was an $11 million federal civil rights case filed in April 2024 against former Clinch County Sheriff Stephen Tinsley and his wife, Deputy April Tinsley, after the sheriff body-slammed Rice while he was handcuffed at a Georgia QuikTrip. A federal judge refused to dismiss the excessive force claim in February 2025, the sheriff appealed, and the parties ended the case with a stipulated dismissal on May 2, 2025. The docket does not disclose settlement terms.1CourtListener. Rice v. Tinsley
What Happened at the Gas Station
On April 7, 2022, Rice, a 37-year-old Black military veteran and military contractor, was inside a QuikTrip in Henry County, Georgia, when he made what his lawsuit described as “unintentional and incidental contact” with Deputy April Tinsley near the coffee counter. Rice said he was looking down and bumped into her as she stepped back.2FOX 5 Atlanta. Clinch County Sheriff, Wife Sued Over Man’s Arrest for Groping Incident in Henry County
Outside, April Tinsley told her husband that Rice had groped her buttocks. Sheriff Tinsley confronted Rice, identified himself as law enforcement, handcuffed him, and then slammed him into a concrete wall. Rice lost consciousness. Cell phone video of the slam went viral.3WCTV. Judge Rejects Former Clinch Co. Sheriff’s Claim, Rules Sheriff Not Immune in Excessive Force Lawsuit
Rice’s girlfriend, Ashley Jackson, started recording. According to the lawsuit, April Tinsley grabbed Jackson’s phone, threw it into a truck bed, and got into a physical scuffle with her, then accused Jackson of grabbing the sheriff. The Henry County Sheriff’s Office took over the scene. Rice was charged with sexual battery and Jackson was arrested.4WSB-TV. Man Claims Wrongful Arrest by Sheriff; Sheriff Claims His Wife Was Assaulted Investigators who later reviewed store security footage said the video “did not corroborate” April Tinsley’s claim that Rice had groped her, and the criminal charges against both Rice and Jackson were eventually dropped.5Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Georgia Couple Sue Sheriff, Wife Over Gas Station Arrest
The Claims Rice Filed
Rice and Jackson filed suit on April 7, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, and amended the complaint two days later. The case was assigned to U.S. District Judge J.P. Boulee.6UniCourt. Rice et al v. Tinsley et al7WALB. Clinch County Sheriff, Wife Face Civil Lawsuit After Convenience Store Incident1CourtListener. Rice v. Tinsley
The Qualified Immunity Ruling
In July 2024, Sheriff Tinsley moved to dismiss, arguing qualified immunity, the doctrine that shields officers from civil liability when their conduct does not violate clearly established rights.8Law360. GA Sheriff Wants $11M Groping Arrest Suit Tossed
On February 13, 2025, Judge Boulee issued a split ruling. He denied dismissal of the excessive force claim, finding that Rice “sufficiently alleged that Sheriff Tinsley acted with actual malice in body slamming him to the ground after he was already handcuffed.” The viral video showing Rice already in cuffs when he was slammed anchored the ruling. The state-law assault and battery claims also survived.3WCTV. Judge Rejects Former Clinch Co. Sheriff’s Claim, Rules Sheriff Not Immune in Excessive Force Lawsuit1CourtListener. Rice v. Tinsley
The judge dismissed the false arrest claim, concluding that Sheriff Tinsley had probable cause to arrest Rice based on his wife’s accusation of groping.9WALB. Judge Rejects Former Clinch Co. Sheriff’s Claim, Rules Sheriff Not Immune in Excessive Force Lawsuit
How the Case Ended
Tinsley filed a notice of appeal to the Eleventh Circuit on February 27, 2025, challenging the qualified immunity denial. The appeal was short-lived. On April 18, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit granted a consent motion to voluntarily dismiss it. Two weeks later, on May 2, 2025, the parties filed a stipulation of dismissal in the district court under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41, and the clerk approved it the same day.1CourtListener. Rice v. Tinsley
No settlement terms appear on the public docket, and no announcement of a resolution has been identified. By the time the case was decided, news reports referred to Stephen Tinsley as the “former” Clinch County Sheriff.9WALB. Judge Rejects Former Clinch Co. Sheriff’s Claim, Rules Sheriff Not Immune in Excessive Force Lawsuit
April Tinsley’s Credibility History
Rice’s complaint attached portions of April Tinsley’s personnel file to attack the reliability of her accusation. Before Clinch County, she worked as a Special Agent with the Georgia Drugs and Narcotics Agency. A 2016 internal memo from GDNA Deputy Director Dennis Troughton reported catching her “in a lie” about a drug seizure and expressed concern that “a GDNA agent would lie” about another agent. She was also accused of falsifying official mileage sheets in 2018.3WCTV. Judge Rejects Former Clinch Co. Sheriff’s Claim, Rules Sheriff Not Immune in Excessive Force Lawsuit2FOX 5 Atlanta. Clinch County Sheriff, Wife Sued Over Man’s Arrest for Groping Incident in Henry County
The amended complaint further alleged that Tinsley had been accused of fabricating parts of investigations at GDNA, had made false accusations of domestic abuse against Sheriff Tinsley, and was listed as “terminated” on Georgia’s peace officer certification website. Rice argued that Sheriff Tinsley knew of this history when he acted on his wife’s accusation.10GovInfo. USCOURTS-gamd-7_23-cv-00135