UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT

┐ MOLLIE SLAYBAUGH; MICHAEL SLAYBAUGH, │ Plaintiffs-Appellants, │ │ v. > No. 23-5765 │ │ RUTHERFORD COUNTY, TENNESSEE; RUTHERFORD │ COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT; TOWN OF SMYRNA, │ TENNESSEE, │ Defendants-Appellees. │ ┘

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee at Nashville. No. 3:23-cv-00057—Aleta Arthur Trauger, District Judge.

Argued: May 9, 2024

Decided and Filed: September 3, 2024

Before: BUSH, NALBANDIAN, and MURPHY, Circuit Judges.

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COUNSEL ARGUED: Jeffrey H. Redfern, INSTITUTE FOR JUSTICE, Arlington, Virginia, for Appellants. Nick Christiansen, HUDSON, REED & CHRISTIANSEN, PLLC, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for Rutherford County Appellees. Robert M. Burns, HOWELL & FISHER, PLLC, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellee Smyrna, Tennessee. ON BRIEF: Jeffrey H. Redfern, Suranjan Sen, INSTITUTE FOR JUSTICE, Arlington, Virginia, Daniel A. Horwitz, HORWITZ LAW, PLLC, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellants. Nick Christiansen, HUDSON, REED & CHRISTIANSEN, PLLC, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for Rutherford County Appellees. Robert M. Burns, Hannah G. Moore, HOWELL & FISHER, PLLC, Nashville, Tennessee, for Appellee Smyrna, Tennessee. Erich R. Eiselt, INTERNATIONAL MUNICIPAL LAWYERS ASSOCIATION, Rockville, Maryland, for Amicus Curiae. No. 23-5765 Slaybaugh v. Rutherford Cnty., Tenn. Page 2

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OPINION _________________

JOHN K. BUSH, Circuit Judge. James Conn murdered Savannah Puckett. His parents, Mollie and Michael Slaybaugh, were among those who suffered the consequences. Police damaged the Slaybaughs’ home while arresting Conn. The Slaybaughs filed this action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, seeking to recover for property damage caused by law enforcement’s actions. At issue is whether they are entitled to compensation under the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment or its analogue under the Tennessee Constitution. Because they are not, we affirm the judgment of the district court.

I.

The Slaybaughs’ residence is in the Town of Smyrna, located in Rutherford County, Tennessee. On January 23, 2022, they agreed to let Conn stay at their house. There, later that evening, Mrs. Slaybaugh looked out a window and noticed two police cars parked outside her neighbor’s home. Curious as to what was happening, she went and opened her front door. Standing on the doorstep were two police officers, one with a gun drawn and the other holding a flashlight. The officers told Mrs. Slaybaugh that her son was wanted for questioning regarding a homicide investigation, and they asked her to step outside. In fact, Conn was suspected of killing Puckett, a Robertson County Sheriff’s Deputy, who was his ex-girlfriend.1 According to the Slaybaughs, this was when they first learned that their son was in trouble with the law.

After speaking with the officers, Mrs. Slaybaugh