City Of Watauga v. Gordon

434 S.W.3d 586 (2014)

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Rule Of Law

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Nature Of The Case

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Facts

Police officers stopped P on suspicion of drunk driving and asked him to submit to a sobriety test. P declined. He was then arrested without resistance. P was handcuffed at the scene and again later when transported from a nearby police station to the city jail. P asserts that on both occasions he informed the officers that his handcuffs were too tight but that his complaints were ignored. P sued D for injuries to his wrists, allegedly caused by the officers' negligent use of property-the handcuffs. D asserted immunity from suit under the intentional-tort exception to the Tort Claims Act's sovereign-immunity waiver, arguing that the cause of action was for battery. The trial court denied D's plea. The court permitted D’s interlocutory appeal. The court of appeals affirmed. P pleaded a negligence claim, pleading that the officers acted negligently in their use of tangible personal property, specifically the use of handcuffs, in one or all of the following ways: by failing to properly use the handcuffs as designed; by failing to follow proper policies and procedures as to the proper use of handcuffs; and by applying the handcuffs on him in a manner that was too tight on his wrists. P asserted a claim for negligence instead of battery because, as P alleged, the officers did not intend to injure him and he did not resist arrest. The court reasoned that P's compliance indicated his consent to the arrest, thereby negating the contact's offensive nature. The court further suggested that P's consent distinguished the case from other cases involving alleged excessive force or other offensive contact during an arrest. The court of appeals concluded that P's pleadings asserted a negligence claim. D appealed.

Issues

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Holding & Decision

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Legal Analysis

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