Federal Appeals Court Ends Former Montgomery Police Chief’s Five-Year Legal Battle With City

Montgomery, AL (BuzzReport)—A five-year legal battle involving former Montgomery Police Chief Ernest Finley and the city has officially come to an end after a federal appeals court rejected Finley’s latest challenge.

On Monday, the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals denied Finley’s appeal of a lower court ruling that granted summary judgment against him in his lawsuit alleging conspiracy and discrimination. The appellate court’s decision effectively closes the case and brings an end to a prolonged legal dispute that became entangled with Alabama’s political and legal institutions.

The lawsuit had placed Finley at the center of a contentious fight involving the city of Montgomery, former officials and allegations that he had been targeted through a coordinated effort. The litigation also exposed a significant rift between the Alabama Ethics Commission and the Alabama Attorney General’s Office over aspects of the broader dispute.

The appeals court, however, concluded that Finley did not present enough evidence to support his allegations.

In an opinion authored by 11th Circuit Chief Judge William Pryor, a former Alabama attorney general, the court affirmed a June 2025 decision by U.S. District Judge Kristi DuBose of the Middle District of Alabama.

DuBose had previously ruled against Finley at the summary-judgment stage, finding that the evidence presented was insufficient to allow his conspiracy and discrimination claims to proceed to trial.

The appeals court agreed, concluding that Finley had “failed to provide sufficient evidence” of the alleged conspiracy.

That finding was critical to the outcome of the case. Rather than sending the dispute back to the trial court for further proceedings, the 11th Circuit upheld the lower court’s decision, leaving Finley without a viable path forward in the federal litigation.

The ruling marks the latest and final chapter in a legal fight that lasted approximately five years and generated significant attention because of the officials and institutions caught up in the controversy.

For Finley, the decision means the federal courts will not provide the relief he sought through his lawsuit. For the city, it ends years of litigation and uncertainty surrounding the claims brought by its former police chief.

The case also highlighted tensions between Alabama’s Ethics Commission and the Attorney General’s Office, adding another layer of controversy to an already complicated legal dispute.

With the 11th Circuit’s ruling now in place, Finley’s federal lawsuit has reached its conclusion unless he pursues a further appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Such a move would require the Supreme Court to agree to hear the case, making Monday’s appellate ruling a significant—if not necessarily absolute—endpoint to the lengthy dispute.

For now, however, the federal appeals court has made its position clear: the lower court’s judgment stands, and Finley’s conspiracy and discrimination claims cannot move forward.

After five years of litigation, the courtroom battle between the former police chief and the city has effectively come to an end.