JUSTICE MARSHALL, … JUSTICE … STEVENS join, dissenting. The District Courtfound that … a federal court is without power to enjoin the enforcement of the city's policy, no matter how flagrantly unconstitutional it may be. Since no one can show that he will be choked in the future,no one -- not even a person who, … Lyons,has a…t been choked to death -- … is free to continue the policy indefinitely, as long as it iswilling … liable under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for the conduct of its employees only if they acted pursuant to such a policy. Monell v. New York City Dept. of Social Services, (1978). Lyons therefore has standing to challenge the city's chokehold policy and to obtain whatever relief a court may ultimately deem appropriate. None of our prior decisions suggests that his requests for particular forms of reliefraise any … additional issuesconcerning … who resides in Los Angeles. According to the uncontradicted evidence in the record, at about 2 a.m. on October 6, 1976, Lyons was pulled over to the curb by two officers of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) for a traffic infraction because one of his tail-lights was burned out.The officers greeted him with drawn revolvers … on top of his head. ...Lyons dropped his hands, but was ordered to place them back above his head, and one of the officersgrabbed … Lyons' ...and slammedthem … the pain caused by the ring of keyshe … by applying a forearm against his throat. As Lyonsstruggled for air,the officer … blacked out. When Lyons regained consciousness, he waslying face down on the ground, choking, gasping for air,and spitting … Fourth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution and seeking damages and declaratory and injunctive relief. He claimed that he was subjected toa chokehold without justification, … which the city was named as a defendant. See Counts II through VI. Lyons alleged that the city authorizes the use of chokeholds "in innumerable situations where the police are not threatened by the use of
