Hale v. United States

334 F. Supp. 566, 1970 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9478
CourtDistrict Court, M.D. Tennessee
DecidedNovember 19, 1970
DocketCiv. A. Nos. 4376, 4377
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 334 F. Supp. 566 (Hale v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, M.D. Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hale v. United States, 334 F. Supp. 566, 1970 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9478 (M.D. Tenn. 1970).

Opinion

OPINION

NOEL P. FOX, District Judge.

These federal tort claims actions were brought by John F. Hale, the father of William E. Hale, a minor. At the time in question, March 1965, William E. Hale was a soldier stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The complaint alleges that the negligence of certain military police caused William E. Hale serious and permanent injuries, for which the United States is liable under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1346 (1964).

The Government contends that this suit is not sustainable under this statute because Hale’s injuries “arose out of or in the course of military duty.” Hale v. United States, 416 F.2d 355 (6th Cir.1969). If Hale’s injuries did arise out of or in the course of military duty, then the federal common law exclusion of certain military personnel claims from this Act’s coverage, which is designed to preserve the “peculiar and special relationship of the soldier to his superiors * * * ” United States v. Brown, 348 U.S. 110, 112, 75 S.Ct. 141, 143, 99 L.Ed. 139 (1954), dictates that the plaintiffs’ claims be dismissed.

William Hale testified that he was a private in the army when the accident occurred. On the evening of March 1, 1965, he had gone, dressed in civilian clothes, to Clarksville, Tennessee, which is about twelve miles from Fort Camp[567]*567bell. He had been issued a Class A pass which permitted him to make this trip.

During the evening, the plaintiff had a few beers, and then some time after midnight, decided to hitchhike back to Fort Campbell. He admitted knowing that military personnel, including those within the limits of a valid Class A pass, were not permitted to hitchhike.1

By around 12:30 A.M., Private Hale had started hitchhiking back to Fort Campbell on 41-A, a main road between Clarksville and the Fort. In Clarksville 41-A is known as Second Street. Private Hale began hitchhiking from a spot just north of the intersection of Second Street and Marion Street. Second Street at this point has four twelve-feet wide traffic lanes, two in each direction, and two eight-feet wide parking lanes. All of the witnesses agreed that there was very little traffic on this cold and misty night. A used ear lot across Second Street from where Private Hale was hitchhiking provided a substantial amount of light for this portion of the road.

Private Hale testified that he was standing in the street about three feet from the curb, hitchhiking, when he first noticed a three-quarter ton Army truck approaching him. He testified that he immediately left the street and stopped hitchhiking. Thereafter, the truck containing two military police, Privates Petrashune and Clayton, stopped even with him about eight feet from the curb.

Hale related the following conversation. The military policeman in the passenger seat, Private Clayton, asked him if he was military. Hale replied that he was. Clayton then asked to see Hale’s military identification. In order to comply, Hale approached the truck and began taking his wallet out of his pocket. Clayton then told him that it was not necessary to produce his identification. Clayton concluded: “If you want a ride, get in the back of the truck.” Hale then proceeded around to the back of the truck, started to climb into the truck and was struck by a speeding car which passed on the right side of the truck.

Private Hale’s testimony is substantially supported by the depositions of Privates Clayton and Petrashune. They testified that on this particular evening they had drawn military police walking patrol in Clarksville. They were issued revolvers and a three-quarter ton army truck. The truck was to be used to transport military personnel if such transportation was needed.

The two military policemen testified that they, had gone on duty about 7:00 P.M. Somewhere between midnight and 12:30 A.M. they were relieved of their walking duty. Both stated, however, that they were not off duty until they returned to Fort Campbell, and cheeked in their weapons and truck.

They left Clarksville about 12:30 A.M. with one other passenger, a Private Doerr, in the back of the truck. Private Doerr was also off duty, but had been picked up and was being returned to his unit because he was not sober. Private Petrashune was driving the truck. Private Clayton was the superior officer.

As the military police drove north on Second Street at about 25 miles per hour, they first noticed Private Hale hitchhiking when he was about 100 to 125 yards in front of them. At that moment, Hale was standing seven feet from the curb in the parking lane. They both testified that he continued to stand in the parking lane and continued to hitch[568]*568hike until the truck stopped right next to him.

Both military police testified that Clayton was the only one to talk to Hale. He asked if Hale was military or civilian. Hale said he was military — a member of the 17th Cavalry, a unit stationed at Fort Campbell. Clayton asked if he wanted a ride back to Fort Campbell; Hale said yes. Clayton then told Hale to get in the back of the truck. Accordingly, Hale went around to the back of the truck. A second or two later, the military police felt a sharp jerk, apparently as Hale’s body hit the truck, and then saw a car swerve off down Second Street. Neither Private Petrashune nor Private Clayton saw this car approaching.

The testimony also evidences the nature of the military relationship between the military police and Private Hale at the time of the accident.2

The two military policemen testified that they felt that while on duty that night they had authority to make sure that military personnel in the Clarksville area, even though off duty in the conventional sense, stayed out of trouble. This authority permitted them to pick up or to arrest military personnel before they were arrested by civilian authorities. The testimony also evidences that these two military policemen often functioned as a type of buffer for military personnel in order to keep them out of serious trouble.

Both military policemen testified that they had been on ear patrol before the date of this accident and that during such patrols, they were permitted to give military personnel rides. This, in fact, had often been done. They were not allowed, however, to give rides to civilians.

Privates Petrashune and Clayton also testified that they knew that the Army regulations made it illegal for military personnel to hitchhike, and that, as military police, they could arrest a soldier for this violation of the Army regulations. Often, however, arrests were not made for such a violation. Hitchhikers were generally just given a ride back to Fort Campbell. Accordingly, Private Clayton testified that it was his responsibility, as senior officer on this particular patrol, to determine whether any particular violation of the Army regulations required that his fullest military authority be exercised, or whether his duty could be performed by some other means.

More specifically, Private Clayton believed that Private Hale was under military police jurisdiction once he accepted the ride.

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Related

James v. United States
358 F. Supp. 1381 (D. Rhode Island, 1973)
Knight v. United States
361 F. Supp. 708 (W.D. Tennessee, 1972)

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Bluebook (online)
334 F. Supp. 566, 1970 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9478, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hale-v-united-states-tnmd-1970.