Faile v. SC Dept. of Juvenile Justice

• Decision Date: 01 July 2002
• Docket Number: No. 25434.,25434.
• Citation: 566 S.E.2d 536,350 S.C. 315
• Court: South Carolina Supreme Court
• Parties: Dexter L. FAILE and Lesa L. Faile, individually and as parents and natural guardians of Brandon Chase Faile, Respondents, v. SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE, Petitioner.

350 S.C. 315

566 S.E.2d 536

Dexter L. FAILE and Lesa L. Faile, individually and as parents and natural guardians of Brandon Chase Faile, Respondents, v. SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE, Petitioner.

No. 25434.

Supreme Court of South Carolina.

Heard October 18, 2000.

Decided July 1, 2002.

William H. Davidson, II, and Andrew F. Lindemann, both of Davidson, Morrison & Lindemann, of Columbia, for petitioner.

Lex A. Rogerson, Jr., of Lexington; and Steven Randall Hood, of Law Offices of James C. Anders, of Rock Hill, for respondents.

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF APPEALS.

Justice BURNETT:

We granted certiorari to review the decision of the Court of Appeals overturning the trial court's grant of summary judgment to the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice ("DJJ") on the ground DJJ was entitled to quasi-judicial immunity under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act.¹ Faile v. S.C. Dep't of Juvenile Justice, Op. No. 99-UP-1811 (S.C. Ct.App. filed June 9, 1999). We affirm in result and remand.

FACTUAL/PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

On April 15, 1993, Fredrico R. ("Fredrico"), age 12, violently assaulted Brandon Chase Faile, the nine-year old son of Dexter and Lesa Faile ("Respondents"). Fredrico was a juvenile delinquent on probation at the time of the attack, with nine prior referrals to DJJ on his record.

In February 1992, Fredrico was charged in the Family Court of Chester County with grand larceny of a bicycle. After pleading guilty, Fredrico was committed by Judge Barrineau to the DJJ Reception and Evaluation Center ("R & E") for the purpose of evaluation and recommendation for disposition.

R & E expressed concern over Fredrico's aggressive behavior, recognizing he was impulsive and explosive at times. After receiving the R & E's recommendation, Judge Barrineau, in April 1992, ordered continued probation for one year, a suspended commitment to DJJ, 25 community service hours, placement in a therapeutic foster home, and counseling sessions for Fredrico's parents.

Fredrico was placed in a new foster home in January 1993. However, on April 7, 1993, he was expelled from that home for stealing a knife and gun from a school police officer. He used the gun to threaten his foster mother. Max Dorsey ("Dorsey"), Fredrico's DJJ probation counselor, removed him from the foster home and placed him in the Greenville Group Home for the night of April 7, 1993. Dorsey placed Fredrico with his biological mother on April 8, 1993, claiming that no alternative placement was available for Fredrico.

Five days after placing Fredrico with his biological mother, Dorsey filed a Rule to Show Cause with the Family Court to have Fredrico brought before the judge to show why his probation should not be revoked. Judge Barrineau signed the Rule and scheduled a hearing for April 21, 1993. Dorsey told the judge Fredrico had been expelled from his foster home where he was temporarily staying with his family, and Dorsey intended to recommend Fredrico be committed to DJJ. Dorsey failed to inform the judge the placement violated the earlier court order. Judge Barrineau did not indicate he knew the placement violated his earlier order. Dorsey did not request a modification of the earlier order. On April 15, 1993, before the hearing was held, Fredrico assaulted Brandon Faile.

Respondents instituted this action against DJJ, alleging DJJ was grossly negligent in placing Fredrico in his family home, and claiming damages of $64,000.00. DJJ moved for summary judgment. The trial court granted DJJ's motion on the ground that DJJ was entitled to quasi-judicial immunity pursuant to S.C.Code Ann. § 15-78-60(1) (Supp.2001). Respondents appealed. The Court of Appeals reversed the trial court, holding a question of fact remained whether the trial judge ratified Dorsey's administrative act (placing Fredrico at home), thereby converting it into a judicial act entitling DJJ to quasi-judicial immunity.

DJJ petitioned for certiorari, asserting the Court of Appeals erred in reversing the trial court's grant of summary judgment. The following issues are before us on certiorari:

I. Did the Court of Appeals err in failing to recognize that DJJ was entitled to quasi-judicial immunity under the South Carolina Tort Claims Act because Dorsey's placement of Fredrico in his family home was a judicial act?

II. Did the Court of Appeals err in refusing to consider DJJ's additional sustaining grounds?

III. Is the trial court's decision to grant summary judgment supported by the following additional sustaining grounds:

A. DJJ is not the proper party to the lawsuit;

B. DJJ is entitled to discretionary immunity under the Tort Claims Act;

C. DJJ is entitled to immunity under the juvenile release exception to the Tort Claims Act; or

D. DJJ did not owe a duty of care to Respondents' child.

LAW/ANALYSIS

I. Quasi-Judicial Immunity

A. Judicial Act Requirement

DJJ argues Dorsey's placement of Fredrico in his family home was a judicial act for which he was entitled to quasi-judicial immunity, and therefore the Court of Appeals erred in reversing the trial court's grant of summary judgment to DJJ. We disagree.

Summary judgment is appropriate when it is clear there is no genuine issue of material fact, and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Bishop v. South Carolina Dep't of Mental Health, 331 S.C. 79, 502 S.E.2d 78 (1998). In determining whether a genuine question of fact exists, the court must view the evidence and all inferences which can be reasonably drawn from the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Id. The governmental entity claiming an exception to the waiver of immunity under the Tort Claims Act has the burden of establishing any limitation on liability. Strange v. S.C. Dep't of Highways & Pub. Transp., 314 S.C. 427, 445 S.E.2d 439 (1994). Provisions establishing limitations on liability must be liberally construed in the State's favor. S.C.Code Ann. § 15-78-20(f) (Supp.2001).

The issue of whether juvenile probation officers are entitled to quasi-judicial immunity under the Tort Claims Act is one of first impression in South Carolina. Section 15-78-60(1) provides: "[t]he governmental entity is not liable for a loss resulting from: legislative, judicial, or quasi-judicial action or inaction." In addition to the judicial immunity under the Tort Claims Act, common law judicial immunity was expressly preserved in South Carolina under the Tort Claims Act. O'Laughlin v. Windham, 330 S.C. 379, 498 S.E.2d 689 (Ct. App.1998), cert. denied 1999 Shearouse Adv. Sh. No. 10 at p. iv.

South Carolina recognizes three exceptions to judicial or quasi-judicial immunity. Judges and other officials are not entitled to judicial immunity if: (1) they did not have jurisdiction to act; (2) the act did not serve a judicial function; or (3) the suit is for prospective, injunctive relief only. Id. at 385, 498 S.E.2d at 692. The second exception, which emphasizes the importance of the act, as opposed to the actor, is relevant here. Under the second exception, even judges are not insulated by judicial immunity when they act in an administrative capacity. Id. (citing Forrester v. White, 484 U.S. 219, 108 S.Ct. 538, 98 L.Ed.2d 555 (1988)). In determining whether an act is judicial, the Court looks to the nature and function of the act. Id.; Mireles v. Waco, 502 U.S. 9, 112 S.Ct. 286, 116 L.Ed.2d 9 (1991); Stump v. Sparkman, 435 U.S. 349, 98 S.Ct. 1099, 55 L.Ed.2d 331 (1978).² Therefore, we must determine whether probation officer Dorsey's placement of Fredrico had the nature and function of a judicial act, thereby entitling him, and thus DJJ, to quasi-judicial immunity.

Much of the analysis of judicial immunity has been made in the federal arena. Several federal circuits have granted probation officers quasi-judicial immunity, but only when carrying out certain functions the courts have deemed to be judicial. The Tenth Circuit has held that federal probation officers are absolutely immune when the action challenged is "intimately associated with the judicial phase of the criminal process." Tripati v. United States Immigration & Naturalization Serv., 784 F.2d 345 (10th Cir.1986) (finding probation officer immune for damages resulting from reporting plaintiff's conviction to immigration authorities). The Tenth Circuit has made clear the immunity arises from protected functions, not from protected individuals. Mee v. Ortega, 967 F.2d 423 (10th Cir. 1992); Forrester, supra.

The key element is whether the officer was engaged in adjudicatory duties when the challenged act occurred. Harper v. Jeffries, 808 F.2d 281 (3d Cir.1986).

Other federal circuit courts have granted probation officers absolute immunity in preparing pre-sentencing reports, and in other situations when they act "as an arm of the court." Gant v. United States Probation Office, 994 F.Supp. 729, 733 (S.D.W.Va.1998) (citations omitted). Many of these courts, however, find no absolute immunity for the same type of officer when the officer is acting in his executive capacity. Gant, supra; Ray v. Pickett, 734 F.2d 370 (8th Cir.1984); Ortega, supra; see also Harper v. Jeffries,

808 F.2d 281 (3d Cir.1986) (denying absolute immunity of probation officer for charging appellant and presenting evidence against him at a parole hearing, because those were his duties as a parole officer).

If the individual is acting pursuant to a direct court order, courts are more likely to grant quasi-judicial immunity for that action. In Babcock v. Tyler, 884 F.2d 497 (9th Cir.1989), a father sued the state for the actions of two social workers who placed his daughters in a home where they were sexually abused. The social workers placed the girls temporarily in the abusive home in April 1982. Id. at 449. The juvenile court confirmed the placement by order in May 1982. The sexual abuse did not occur until sometime after May: Id. Plaintiffs argued the social workers were not entitled to...