Wilson v. State Dept. of Public Safety and Corrections
| Decision Date | 26 June 1990 |
| Docket Number | Nos. CA,s. CA |
| Citation | 563 So.2d 1251 |
| Parties | Alvin WILSON v. STATE of Louisiana, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONS. Ed HILLIARD, Jr. v. STATE of Louisiana, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONS. 89 0969, CA 89 0984. |
| Court | Court of Appeal of Louisiana — District of US |
Albert F. Richard, Plaquemine, Charles E. Griffin, St. Francisville, for plaintiff-appellee.
Houston T. Penn, Baton Rouge, for defendant-appellant.
Before EDWARDS, LANIER and FOIL, JJ.
In this appeal, we are asked to decide whether the State, as a custodian of prisoners, is liable for criminal acts perpetrated on two individuals by an escaped convict, where the incidents in question took place thirteen days after the escape. The lower court held the State liable to the victims. We reverse.
This is a negligence action brought by victims of a robbery committed by an escaped convict against the State of Louisiana, through the Department of Corrections. The record shows that Robert Downs was confined to the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola, Louisiana, serving a sentence of 198 years for armed robbery. On the evening of August 23, 1986, Downs, Danny Weeks and James Colvin escaped from Angola. An investigation revealed that the three escaped by removing a cinder block from a wall constructed underneath an elevated gym at the institution. They made their way to the perimeter fence, and cut through the fence directly below an unmanned guard tower.
A head count taken shortly after the escape revealed that three inmates were missing, and prison officials immediately initiated a search. The State Penitentiary Search Team searched with dogs, sent out guards at key locations and patrolled the area. Subsequently, the search personnel were deployed to different locations in Mississippi as the officials began receiving leads on the whereabouts of the escaped convicts. Although the search lessened in intensity as time went on, it was not formally called off until the incidents involved in this lawsuit transpired.
On the evening of September 6, 1986, plaintiffs, Alvin Wilson and Ed Hilliard, Jr., were confronted by Downs as they returned home to a trailer located fifteen miles from Angola. Armed with a gun, Downs ordered the men to give him the keys to a truck they arrived in, then led them inside the trailer, where he tied them up. Downs then stole numerous items belonging to the victims, including the truck, money, clothes, food and weapons. Shortly thereafter, Wilson and Hilliard identified Downs at the local sheriff's office as the assailant.
Contending the State was negligent in allowing Downs to escape from its custody, plaintiffs filed this suit, seeking damages for personal injuries and the theft of their property. During the trial, following the conclusion of plaintiffs' evidence, the State moved for a directed verdict on the issue of liability. The trial court refused the request, finding that the criminal acts were perpetrated during the course of an ongoing escape, and were committed to obtain money and transportation to effectuate the escape. At the conclusion of all of the evidence, the trial court found the State at fault, awarding damages to Alvin Wilson in the amount of $17,500.00, and to Ed Hilliard, Jr. in the amount of $15,000.00. The State took this appeal, challenging the liability and quantum determinations.
Our jurisprudence sets forth certain principles governing the liability of a prison custodian for acts committed by those escaping from its custody. A custodian has a duty to manage the affairs of the prison so as not to create an unreasonable risk of harm to the public. To recover against a custodian, a plaintiff must prove that the custodian was negligent in the management of the prison, that this negligence facilitated the escape, that the actions of the escapee caused the harm...
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Wilson v. State Through Dept. of Public Safety and Corrections
...to effectuate the escape. The court of appeal reversed and rendered judgment for the defendant. Wilson v. Dept. of Public Safety & Corr., 563 So.2d 1251 (La.App. 1st Cir.1990). It held the trial court erred in finding the injuries sustained by the plaintiffs were within the scope of the dut......
- Wilson v. State Dept. of Public Safety and Corrections