Davis v. Little, No. 50638
| Court | United States State Supreme Court of Mississippi |
| Writing for the Court | WALKER; PATTERSON |
| Citation | 362 So.2d 642 |
| Docket Number | No. 50638 |
| Decision Date | 13 September 1978 |
| Parties | Rosie Lee DAVIS v. Mrs. Leslie LITTLE. |
Page 642
v.
Mrs. Leslie LITTLE.
Page 643
Robert E. Sanders, Jackson, for appellant.
Williamson & Smith, William H. Smith, III, George G. Williamson, Mendenhall, for appellee.
Before ROBERTSON, WALKER and COFER, JJ.
WALKER, Justice, for the Court:
This is a personal injury negligence case. Suit was filed in the Circuit Court of Simpson County alleging that the defendant negligently struck plaintiff while driving a pickup truck. Defendant answered, denying negligence and pleading the defense of governmental immunity. A motion to dismiss was sustained and suit dismissed with prejudice.
The complaint alleges that Leslie Little negligently drove her pickup truck onto a walkway off of the street and caused personal injury to Rosie Lee Davis. In the answer, Little alleged she was a member of the Simpson County Board of Supervisors, was driving a county-owned vehicle, and was involved at the time of the occurrence in county business. She then invoked the "doctrine of governmental immunity."
The trial judge granted a hearing on the motion to dismiss at which the parties stipulated that the defendant was engaged in county business at the time of the accident. The trial judge then held the doctrine of governmental immunity was applicable and dismissed the suit with prejudice.
The issue presented on appeal is whether the doctrine of governmental immunity was properly invoked on the facts and circumstances of this case.
It is clear that in spite of growing criticism the doctrine of governmental immunity is applicable in Mississippi. Jackson v. Smith, 309 So.2d 520 (Miss.1975); Twiner v. Jenkins, 257 So.2d 488 (Miss.1972); Anderson v. Vanderslice, 240 Miss. 55, 126 So.2d 522 (1961). However, a distinction must be drawn between the doctrine of governmental immunity and the legal principle by which public officers are granted limited immunity from liability under certain factual situations.
Governmental immunity is that doctrine under which the sovereign, be it country, state, county or municipality may not be sued without its consent. 1 Osborn v. Bank of the United States, 9 Wheat. 738, 22 U.S. 738, 6 L.Ed. 204 (1824).
The immunity of public officials, on the other hand, is a more limited principle, since its purpose is not directly to protect the sovereign, but rather to do so only collaterally, by protecting the public official in performance of his governmental function. Given the more limited function, courts have generally extended less than absolute immunity. The most commonly recognized limitation is the distinction between discretionary acts as opposed to ministerial acts. Under this distinction the official is immune only where that which he does in the performance of his lawful duties requires "personal deliberation, decision and judgment." See Prosser, Law of Torts § 132 (4th ed. 1971).
In the present case the defense was incorrectly characterized in the lower court as the defense of "governmental immunity." Here suit was brought not against the government but a private party, Leslie Little, who happened to be acting in her role as a county supervisor when the injury occurred. In State Mineral Lease Comm. v. Lawrence, 171 Miss. 442, 157 So. 897 (1934), this Court pointed out that where suit was against governmental officials individually and the state was not a party, nor would the relief demanded require the state to take any affirmative action, the doctrine of governmental immunity was not applicable. The Lawrence case was an action to remove a cloud on title to lands. In State For Use of Russell v. McRae, 169 Miss. 169, 152 So. 826 (1934), the cause of action was in tort against a member of the board of supervisors
Page 644
for negligence. The Court pointedly stated:This is not a suit against the sovereign, or against the board or a member thereof as a...
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Hodgson v. Mississippi Dept. of Corrections, No. 93-C-819.
...individual capacities have a limited, qualified immunity that extends to "discretionary," not to "ministerial" acts. Davis v. Little, 362 So.2d 642, 643 (Miss.1978). A discretionary act is one requiring "personal deliberation, decision and judgment." Id. (quoting W. Prosser, Law of Torts § ......
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Rupp v. Bryant, No. 60826
...v. Beauchamp, 362 S.W.2d 33 (Ky.1962) (officers and employees of a state department personally liable for negligence); Davis v. Little, 362 So.2d 642 (Miss.1978) (official immunity does not protect public officer for negligent driving in scope of duties as non-discretionary act); Oyler v. S......
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McFadden v. State, No. 58188
...Benefit of Brazeale v. Lewis, 498 So.2d 321, 322 (Miss.1986); White v. City of Tupelo, 462 So.2d 707, 710 (Miss.1984); Davis v. Little, 362 So.2d 642 (Miss.1978); State ex rel. Russell v. McRae, 169 Miss. 169, 179, 152 So. 826, 828 The means of distinguishing between the two official capaci......
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Borelli v. Renaldi, SC 20232
...of a vehicle by any one, including a public official, is a mere ministerial act" (internal quotation marks omitted)); Davis v. Little , 362 So. 2d 642, 643–45 (Miss. 1978) (member of county board of supervisors was engaged in ministerial act when driving pickup truck); Brown v. Tate , 888 S......
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Bogard v. Cook, No. 76-2890
...indifference" standard required Deliberate conduct. 569 F.2d at 1311-12. 8 A recent Mississippi Supreme Court decision. Davis v. Little, 362 So.2d 642 (1978) acknowledged the existence of a "limited immunity" defense in instances in which an official's "performance of his lawful duties requ......
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Hodgson v. Mississippi Dept. of Corrections, No. 93-C-819.
...individual capacities have a limited, qualified immunity that extends to "discretionary," not to "ministerial" acts. Davis v. Little, 362 So.2d 642, 643 (Miss.1978). A discretionary act is one requiring "personal deliberation, decision and judgment." Id. (quoting W. Prosser, Law of Torts § ......
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Rupp v. Bryant, No. 60826
...v. Beauchamp, 362 S.W.2d 33 (Ky.1962) (officers and employees of a state department personally liable for negligence); Davis v. Little, 362 So.2d 642 (Miss.1978) (official immunity does not protect public officer for negligent driving in scope of duties as non-discretionary act); Oyler v. S......
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McFadden v. State, No. 58188
...Benefit of Brazeale v. Lewis, 498 So.2d 321, 322 (Miss.1986); White v. City of Tupelo, 462 So.2d 707, 710 (Miss.1984); Davis v. Little, 362 So.2d 642 (Miss.1978); State ex rel. Russell v. McRae, 169 Miss. 169, 179, 152 So. 826, 828 The means of distinguishing between the two official capaci......