Bragg v. Board of Public Instruction of Duval County
| Citation | 160 Fla. 590,36 So.2d 222 |
| Parties | BRAGG v. BOARD OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION OF DUVAL COUNTY. |
| Decision Date | 18 June 1948 |
| Court | Florida Supreme Court |
Appeal from Circuit Court, Duval County; Bayard B Shields, judge.
Will O Murrell, of Jacksonvill, for appellant.
Edwin C Coffee, of Jacksonville, for appellee.
James Dudley Bragg a minor and student in one of the high schools of Duval County, was seriously injured by having his right arm and hand lacerated and bruised and his fingers severed while manipulating an old model printing press which the Board of Public Instruction had procured in aid of its manual training program. He brought this action to recover damages for his injury. A demurrer to the declaration was sustained, final judgment was rendered for defendant and the plaintiff appealed.
The question for determination is whether or not the Board of Public Instruction of Duval County is immune from liability in a tort action.
If we had previously been confronted with this question the judgment appealed from would have been affirmed without opinion. Appellant contends that it should be answered in the negative and supports his contention with Section 4, Declaration of Rights, Florida Constitution, Kaufman v. City of Tallahassee, 84 Fla. 634, 94 So. 697, 30 A.L.R. 471 and similar cases.
The last cited case and others relied on by appellant have to do with the liability of municipalities in tort and the law is well settled that they may be required to respond in damages for negligent injury to another.
The law may impose liability for tort on Boards of Public Instruction but the prevailing rule in this country is that they are not so liable unless made so by law. This is the rule because they are engaged in a purely governmental function. The mere fact that the Board of Public Instruction is created as a body corporate with power to sue and be sued does not affect its immunity from tort. Turk v. County Board of Education of Monroe County, 222 Ala. 177, 131 So. 436; Boice, et al. v. Board of Education of Rock District, 111 W.Va. 95, 160 S.E. 566; Perkins v. Trask, et al. 95 Mont. 1, 23 P.2d 982; Rhoades v. School District No. 9, 115 Mont. 352, 142 P.2d 890, 160 A.L.R. 1. In 160 A.L.R., page 38, an exhaustive note citing many cases will be found.
The case of Swanson v. School District No. 15, Pierce County, 109 Wash. 652, 187 P. 386, is similar to the case at bar in that there was an attempt to impose liability on the school district for injuries to a pupil while operating a machine provided for manual training. Section 230.03, Fla.Stat.1941, F.S.A., makes the county school system a part of the state school system of education, and Section 242.16, Fla.Stat.1941, F.S.A., requires that County Boards of Public Instruction include in their course of study one or more courses in vocational training.
The principle of immunity from tort has been approved by indirection in Sections 9 and 13, Article 12 of the Constitution, wherein the public school fund is detailed and immunized from use for any other purpose. It was also recognized by the Legislature in the passage of Section 234.03, Fla.Stat.1941, F.S.A requiring County Boards of Public Instruction to carry...
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Patsy v. Board of Regents of State of Florida
...and had waived the defense of sovereign immunity "only in selected tort cases." Tr. of Oral Arg. 26. See Bragg v. Board of Public Instruction, 160 Fla. 590, 36 So.2d 222 (1948) ("The mere fact that the Board of Public Instruction is created as a body corporate with power to sue and be sued ......
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...appropriated by law has long been considered a policy factor upholding the state's immunity from suit. See Bragg v. Board of Public Instruction, 160 Fla. 590, 36 So.2d 222 (1948). Certainly the legislature, in passing the broad grant of waiver authorized by section 768.28, must have taken a......
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