Appeals court revives lawsuit over wrong-house raid by Harris County deputies

A wrong address in southeast Houston turned a routine police response into a federal civil-rights case, and now a Fifth Circuit ruling has given Tyler Harrington another chance to hold Harris County Precinct 2 deputies accountable for what happened inside his bedroom.

The panel revived Harrington’s unlawful entry, search and seizure claims against deputies James Lancaster, Nathaniel Cano and Jared Lindsay, saying the lawsuit can continue over the second time the officers went into the home. The court dismissed Harrington’s excessive-force claim, but the opinion still marked a significant rebuke in a case that began on Sept. 25, 2022, when Harrington and his wife were asleep and deputies entered the wrong house.

According to the opinion, a neighbor had called 911 with the wrong address, and officers arrived expecting either a vacant home or an intruder. The deputies initially entered believing they were conducting a protective sweep, after confirming what they thought was owner consent to clear the house. But once inside, they found Harrington and his wife in bed. Officer Lindsay then whispered, “There’s somebody asleep on the bed. Did they give us the right address?” Officer Cano answered, “I don’t know.” The court said that moment should have stopped the encounter before the deputies went back in.

That second entry was the line the panel would not excuse. The court said apparent consent could justify the first entry, but not the return moments later once the officers had reason to doubt they were at the right place. In other words, the judges said the deputies should have verified the address before re-entering, rather than pressing ahead on uncertainty.

The lawsuit was filed Jan. 31, 2024, in the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division, under case number 4:24-CV-00366. The Fifth Circuit opinion, filed May 4, 2026, came from Judges Jones, Stewart and Willett. Civil Rights Corps, which represents Harrington, said the ruling reinstated his unlawful-entry, search and seizure claims while leaving the excessive-force claim blocked by qualified immunity.

The case is drawing attention in Harris County because constables have long faced scrutiny over how hard they can be to sue for civil-rights violations. A 2024 Houston Chronicle investigation into that system described a legal loophole that has made county constables unusually difficult to hold responsible in court. This ruling does not settle the broader accountability fight, but it puts Precinct 2’s address-checking and entry practices back under a bright legal light.