Tennessee City Responsible for Injuries Sustained on City Property Despite Lack of Evidence of Prior Accidents: Petty v. City of White House
A recent case published in the Tennessee Attorney’s Memo, provides a very good explanation of a city’s liability for dangerous conditions found on property that it owns and controls. The case, Petty v. City of White House, involved a plaintiff falling into a hole located on city property and breaking her ankle.
One of the main obstacles the plaintiff had to overcome was the city’s governmental immunity under TCA 29-20-204, which provides: “all governmental entities shall be immune from suit for any injury which may result from [governmental activities] wherein [they] are engaged in the exercise and discharge of any of their [governmental functions].” To get around the city’s immunity, the plaintiff had to prove facts qualifying her case under one of the exceptions provided for under Tennessee’s GTLA statutes. The statute applicable in Petty was TCA 29-20-204, and essentially states that a city can be liable for injuries caused by “dangerous or defective conditions” found on public improvements provided that the city was on either actual or constructive notice of the defective conditions.
Finding that the hole located in the field wherein the plaintiff fell was a “public improvement,” the court assessed whether the city was on constructive notice of a defective condition. Proving constructive notice requires a showing that either the dangerous condition was created by the government, or that the condition should have been discovered by the city’s employees or agents through the exercise of “due diligence or “ordinary care”.
The defendant argued that the government was not on notice because no accidents had previously been reported nor had the city received any complaints. The plaintiff, however, provided proof that the hole had existed on the property for some time as evidenced by the fact that grass had grown up inside the hole. The court added further that government workers testified that they had previously discovered other holes on the property and were under orders to seek out and fix holes upon discovery. From this evidence, the court found for the plaintiff, reasoning that the city’s assertion of lack of complaints for previous accidents went more to the issue of actual notice and not constructive notice (i.e., that which the government should have been aware of through the exercise of reasonable care).
As Perry shows, cities and other municipalities are potentially responsible for injuries caused by dangerous conditions found on land they control. If you have been injured on public land, contact an experienced East Tennessee premises liability attorney at Baker Associates by dialing 866-853-2888. Baker Associates law offices are located in Knoxville and Sevierville. Call now to schedule an appointment.
Source: Petty v. City of White House, 34 TAM 39, 3-4 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2009); 2009 Tenn. App. LEXIS 599.
