Corrigan v. United States

• Decision Date: 18 October 1984
• Docket Number: 84-0675-A.,Civ. A. No. 84-0787-A
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Virginia
• Parties: John T. CORRIGAN, Guardian of Daughter, Maura L. Corrigan, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES of America, Defendant. C.L. DIMOS, Personal Representative of the Estate of Michael T. McDonnell, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES of America, Defendant.

595 F. Supp. 1047

John T. CORRIGAN, Guardian of Daughter, Maura L. Corrigan, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES of America, Defendant.

C.L. DIMOS, Personal Representative of the Estate of Michael T. McDonnell, Plaintiff, v. UNITED STATES of America, Defendant.

Civ. A. Nos. 84-0787-A, 84-0675-A.

United States District Court, E.D. Virginia, Alexandria Division.

October 18, 1984.

John L. McGann, Arlington, Va., for Corrigan.

William G. Schaffer, Schaffer, Brown & Cooper, Washington, D.C., Bruce B. HcHale, Rosenbleet & McHale, Alexandria, Va., for Dimos.

Paula M. Potoczak, Asst. U.S. Atty., Alexandria, Va., for U.S.A.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

RICHARD L. WILLIAMS, District Judge.

This consolidated action is before the Court on defendant's motion for summary judgment with respect to plaintiff Corrigan, and on defendant's motion to dismiss with respect to plaintiff Dimos. In considering the defendant's motions, the Court must treat the allegations of the plaintiffs as either admitted or not genuinely in issue. Meltzer v. Atlantic Research Corp., 330 F.2d 946 (4th Cir.1964), cert. denied, Scurlock v. Meltzer, 379 U.S. 841, 85 S.Ct. 78, 13 L.Ed.2d 47 (1964).

FACTS: On the night of December 19, 1981, Patrick Patterson, a member of the U.S. Army, went with a friend to a base club on the Fort Myers Army Base for a few drinks. The base club was a popular place for military personnel on weekends, since drinks are sold to them there at a discount price. While at the club, Patterson allegedly consumed a large quantity of alcohol, including some hard liquor, even though he was only 19 years old; the minimum age for purchasing or consuming hard liquor in Virginia is 21. VA.CODE § 4-62 (1983).

After consuming a large quantity of alcohol at the club, Patterson got into a car and began to drive. At 12:15 a.m., Patterson hit a motor vehicle while approaching a stop light a few miles from the club. While attempting to leave the scene of that accident, Patterson hit a second vehicle, and then drove off. Finally, Patterson drove through a stop sign and collided with a car driven by a Michael McDonnell; Maura Corrigan was a passenger in this car. McDonnell was killed in the accident, and Maura Corrigan is still in the hospital in a coma. After the third accident, Patterson's blood-alcohol level was measured at .26, well above the legal maximum of .10; he was subsequently convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to one year in prison.

The administrator of Michael McDonnell's estate, C.L. Dimos, and Maura Corrigan's guardian, John T. Corrigan, have brought this action against the United States contending that agents of the United States were negligent in serving alcohol to Patterson when he was both under age and obviously intoxicated, and that this negligence was the proximate cause of the accident. The United States has moved to dismiss the Dimos action, and has moved for summary judgment against Corrigan. In support of both of its motions, the United States contends that a tavern owner cannot be held civilly liable under Virginia law to innocent victims of an accident caused by the reckless, drunken driving of an under-aged, intoxicated tavern patron. DISCUSSION: Since the plaintiffs' case against the United States has been brought under the Federal Torts Claims Act, the government's liability is determined in accordance with the law of the place where the act or omission occurred. 28 U.S.C. § 1346(b). All of the alleged acts of negligence, the accident, and the ensuing injuries took place in Virginia, and therefore Virginia law controls the substantive elements of the litigation.

Virginia law with respect to a tavern owner's vicarious liability for torts committed by an intoxicated person is unclear. There is no "Dram Shop" or "Civil Liability" statute which specifically imposes any civil liability for the sale of intoxicating beverages, and Virginia courts have never been called on to determine the liability of a tavern owner under the common law for injuries caused by persons to whom the tavern negligently served alcohol. Since there is no state statute or state court ruling directly on point, this Court must try and determine what the Supreme Court of Virginia would do if confronted with the same question. Guidance in such situations comes from analogous Virginia state court decisions, decisions in other jurisdictions, relevant statutes, and scholarly treatments of the law such as law review articles. Moore's Federal Practice, § 0.309, p. 3119-3124 (citations and footnotes omitted).

While the Virginia legislature has not specifically imposed civil liability on tavern owners for injuries arising out of the sale of alcoholic beverages, it has recognized the inherent unreasonableness of this defendant's alleged conduct in VA.CODE § 4-62. Under § 4-62, a tavern owner who sells an alcoholic beverage to an under-aged or intoxicated individual is guilty of a misdemeanor. Even though this statute, by itself or in combination with any other statute, does not create a private cause of action, see Ward v. Conner, 495 F.Supp. 434, rev'd on other grounds, 657 F.2d 45 (4th Cir.1981), cert. denied 455 U.S. 907, 102 S.Ct. 1253, 71 L.Ed.2d 445 (1982), it does serve to define a minimum standard of care applicable to those who serve alcoholic beverages. Virginia courts have consistently ruled that violation of a statute constitutes negligence per se, and will support a recovery for damages that are the proximate cause of the injury so long as the injured person is a member of the class for whose benefit the legislation was enacted. Smith v. Virginia Transit Co., 206 Va. 951, 147 S.E.2d 110 (1966)....