 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Stafford v. Baker6/2/1998
s decedents by allowing a probationer under house arrest to escape and kill the decedents. Id. at 546, 479 S.E.2d at 27. After a hearing before both the Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Corrections and subsequently the Full Commission of the North Carolina Industrial Commission, plaintiff prevailed and the probation officer was held liable for having breached his duty of care in the supervision of the probationer. Id. at 546-47, 479 S.E.2d at 28. On appeal to this Court, however, we reversed that ruling, holding instead that the public duty doctrine barred plaintiff's claim because there was no evidence in the record that either of the recognized exceptions to the public duty doctrine applied. Id. For the reasons stated in Hedrick, we held that under the public duty doctrine, the probation officer and the Department of Corrections owed a duty to the general public at large, and not to plaintiff's decedents specifically. Id.
Similarly, in Hull v. Oldham, 104 N.C. App. 29, 407 S.E.2d 611, disc. review denied, 330 N.C. 441, 412 S.E.2d 72 (1991), and Prevette v. Forsyth County, 110 N.C. App. 754, 431 S.E.2d 216 (1993), two cases decided by this Court prior to Hedrick, we refused to create a new exception to the public duty doctrine based upon an alleged "special relationship" between the subject wrongdoer and law enforcement agents. In Hull, the plaintiffs sued the Sheriff of Forsyth County for violation of his sheriff's bond and for his negligence in failing to prevent a man named Michael Hayes from killing two people and injuring others. Plaintiffs alleged that Hayes' family sought information on how to involuntarily commit Hayes and that on at least one occasion, a deputy was present while Hayes was in the hospital, knew of Hayes' condition, yet failed to provide the necessary information as to commitment procedures. Id. at 33, 407 S.E.2d at 613. In asserting their argument that an exception to the public duty doctrine applied as to their claim of negligence, the plaintiffs argued, among other things, that a special relationship arose between the victims and the defendants "because a deputy had 'constructive control' of Hayes at the hospital." Id. at 36, 407 S.E.2d at 615. In rejecting this argument, this Court reemphasized the fact that defendants could not be held liable unless a "special relationship exist between the victim and law enforcement officials, such as where the victim is in police custody," or where law enforcement officials promise protection to a victim and their failure to give such protection ultimately results in the victim being injured. Id. After finding that plaintiffs' complaint failed to allege a promise of protection to the victims or that "there was any relationship between the victims and the defendants much less a special relationship," we held that defendants owed no special duty to the individual victims. Id.
In Prevette, plaintiffs brought an action against Forsyth County, its Animal Control Department and Shelter as well as several other named animal control agents, alleging that the defendants had failed to properly protect the decedent from two rottweiler dogs, even though defendants had reason to know that the dogs were dangerous. 110 N.C. App. at 757, 431 S.E.2d at 218. In their attempt to bring the claim within one of the recognized exceptions to the public duty doctrine, plaintiffs argued that a "special relationship" existed between defendants and the decedent simply because the County's animal control agents had policed the neighborhood in which the decedent was attacked. Id. at 758, 431 S.E.2d at 218. Although defendants in that case had taken custody of the dogs after receiving several reports that the dogs were attacking individuals, we concluded tha
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 North Carolina Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|