NCJ Number
118568
Journal
American Journal of Police Volume: 8 Issue: 1 Dated: (1989) Pages: 37-69
Date Published
1989
Length
33 pages
Annotation
This article assesses government liability under State law for failure of police to warn or otherwise protect individuals threatened with violence.
Abstract
Although the doctrine of sovereign immunity has declined, vestiges remain under the public duty doctrine. Under the public duty doctrine, police protection is a duty owed to the general public, not to a particular individual. Recently, however, some courts have rethought this approach and found the doctrine to be a form of sovereign immunity, since the actual effect of the public duty doctrine is to free government entities from particular liability. It is a barrier to plaintiff's recovery cast as a form of court-sponsored immunity. The public duty doctrine, as any form of sovereign immunity, cannot be justified, since it protects government from liability at the expense of justice for individual citizens harmed by governmental action or negligence. Although there is a "special circumstances" exception to the public duty doctrine, it is limited to those rare cases when a court order or collaborator situation exists, and it is interpreted narrowly to include only those instances where the police are reasonably aware of the danger. Subjecting government to the same State tort law application as that for private individuals will not produce dire economic consequences for government and will not unduly interfere with its ability to govern. 114 notes.