Municipal Tort Liability and Local Government Responses

¹ The U.S. Supreme Court has reserved decision as to the Fourteenth Amendment (Mt. Healthy City School District Board of Education v. Doyle, 429 U.S. 274, 97 S. Ct. 568 (1977)), though some U.S. Circuit Courts have recognized a direct cause of action under the Constitution.

²⁴² U.S.C. Section 1983.

³ Monroe v. Pape, 365 U.S. 157 (1961).

⁴ Ibid., 186-191.

⁵ Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232 (1974).

⁶ Monroe v. Pape, op. cit., 240.

⁷ Wood v. Strickland, 420 U.S. 308 (1975).

⁸ Ibid., 322.

⁹ Tenney v. Brandhove, 341 U.S. 367 (1951).

¹⁰ Pierson v. Ray, 386 U.S. 547 (1967).

¹² Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409 (1976).

¹³ Butz v. Economou, 38 CCH S. Ct. Bull., 1977-78.

1538 CCH S. Ct. Bull., 1977-78.

16Ibid., B2710.

¹⁸ Owen v. City of Independence, 495 U.S. 622 (1980).

19Owen v. City of Independence, 40 CCH S. Ct. Bull., B1739.

²⁰ Ibid., B1 774.

²¹ Maine v. Thiboutot, 448 U.S. 1 (1980).

2242 U.S.C. Section 1988.

23448 U.S. 122 (1980).

24453 U.S. 247 (1981).

25U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, 626 F.2d, 1060 (1980). Jury verdict from District Court trial awarded compensatory damages of $72,910 and punitive damages of $275,000; of the punitive damages, $75,000 was divided up among the seven individual officers and $200,000 was awarded against the City.

(see also: 41 CCH S. Ct. Bull., 1980-81, B).

²⁹ William H. Smith v. Daniel R. Wade, Supreme Court petition for Cert. no. 81-1196, 8th Cir. Ct.; granted April 19, 1982.

30Polk County et al. v. Dodson, 42 CCH S. Ct. Bull., 1981-82.

³¹ Ibid., B587.

33 Patsy v. Board of Regents of the State of Florida, No. 80-1874.

³⁴ Adicks v. S. H. Kress & Co., 436 U.S. 694 (1970).

35Owen v. City of Independence, B1 764.

³⁶ Maine v. Thiboutot, 40 CCH S. Ct. Bull, 3845-48.

37 Walter S. Groszyk, Jr. , and Thomas J. Madden , "Managing without Immunity: The Challenge for State and Local Govemment Officials in the 1980s," Public Administration Review 41 (March/April 1981): 270.

38 "Why Municipal Liability Insurance Is Alive and Well," Journal of American Insurance 56 (Summer 1980): 17.

39Ibid., 19.

40 Ibid., 1 8.

41 Jerry Todd , Effective Risk and Insurance Management in Municipal Government (Austin, Texas: Institute of Public Affairs, University of Texas, 1970), p. 14.

42 Felix Kloman , "Risk Management: A Developing Discipline," in Paula R. Valenta (ed.), Current Approaches to Risk Management: A Directory of Practices (Washington, D.C.: International City Management Association, 1980),p. 28.

43 Nestor R. Roos , Risk Management: Selected Characteristics for Individual Cities and Counties (Washington, D.C.: Urban Data Service Report, Vol. 14; International City Management Association, 1982),p. 12.