Lillie M. Middlebrooks v. Scott Kasmar, et al.

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) limits courts to the allegations within the complaint and documents incorporated into the pleadings. Under Rule 10(c), incorporation-by-reference is a narrow ex­ ception that applies only when a plaintiff attaches, references, or relies on a document in drafting the complaint. The Second, Fifth, Eighth, and Tenth Cir­ cuits strictly enforce this limitation, holding that de­ fendants may not introduce body-camera or dash-camera videos at the pleadings stage unless the plaintiff incorporated them into the complaint. The Eleventh Circuit has adopted the opposite rule. It permits defendants to introduce video evi­ dence at the Rule 12(b)(6) or Rule 12(c) stage even when the plaintiff did not attach, reference, or rely on the footage, so long as the court deems the video “cen­ tral” to the plaintiffs claims and its authenticity un­ disputed. Johnson v. City of Atlanta, 107 F.4th 1292, 1298-1301 (11th Cir. 2024). The question presented is: Whether a defendant may introduce po­ lice-generated body-camera or dash-camera video at the pleadings stage when the video is neither at­ tached to the complaint, incorporated by reference, nor otherwise part of the pleadings under Rule 10(c).