Sauders v. County of Steuben

664 N.E.2d 768, 1996 Ind. App. LEXIS 579, 1996 WL 223616
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 30, 1996
DocketNo. 92A03-9411-CV-400
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 664 N.E.2d 768 (Sauders v. County of Steuben) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sauders v. County of Steuben, 664 N.E.2d 768, 1996 Ind. App. LEXIS 579, 1996 WL 223616 (Ind. Ct. App. 1996).

Opinion

OPINION

HOFFMAN, Judge.

Appellant-plaintiff Betty Jean Sauders, personal representative of the estate of Mark W. Sowles, deceased, appeals from a judgment in favor of the County of Steuben; Lawnie M. McClelland, as Sheriff of Steuben County; Mark Klink and Gregory W. Aldrich (collectively referred to as "Steuben County") in a wrongful death action arising from Sowles' suicide while a pretrial detainee in the Steuben County Jail.

The majority of facts relevant to the appeal were stated by our supreme court in an earlier appeal as follows:

On April 28, 1986, an automobile driven by Sowles collided with the rear of a police patrol vehicle driven by an Angola city police officer. An Indiana state trooper investigated the accident and arrested Sowles. Tests showed his blood alcohol level to be .15 per cent. Because IND. CODE ANN. § 85-33-1-6 (West 1986) required Sowles to be incarcerated for at least four hours, he was transported to the Steuben County jail at approximately midnight, where he was processed by Aldrich, an employee of the Sheriffs Department, and placed alone in a two-person cell at 12:85 am. At 1:17 a.m., Sowles was found unconscious with a noose of blanket strips knotted around his neck. Despite resuscitation attempts and subsequent medical treatment, Sowles never regained consciousness. He remained in a permanent vegetative state until he died on July 13, 1988. Sauders filed suit alleging that the jail defendants had been negligent in their care and custody of the decedent....

Tittle v. Mahan, 582 N.E.2d 796, 798 (Ind.1991). Additional facts will be supplied as necessary.

Three issues are raised for review:

(1) whether the trial court erred in restricting evidence on video monitoring jail inmates;
(2) whether the trial court erred in instructing the jury as to the defenses of contributory negligence, assumption of the risk and incurred risk; and
(8) whether the trial court erred in instructing the jury that none of the defendants owed a duty to Sowles to purchase or install audio-video monitoring equipment, and the absence of such equipment should not be considered by the jury in determining Steuben County's liability.

Sauders contends that the trial court erred in not permitting her to introduce evidence regarding Indiana Jail Standard, 210 IAC 3-1-1 et seq., which requires audio-video monitoring of intoxicated pretrial detainees such as Sowles. Prior to trial, the court granted paragraph one of Steuben County's motion in limine, which requested the exclusion of all matters which the trial court had entered summary judgments. As to the present issue, the trial court entered a partial summary judgment dated November 14, 1989 ("1989 Judgment"). In relevant part, the 1989 Judgment provides:

15. The defendants, Steuben County Sheriffs Department, and its employees, owed Sowles no duty to purchase or install audio/video monitoring equipment[.] [See,] City of Hammond v. Cataldi (1983), Ind.App., 449 N.E.2d 1184.
16. The defendants, Steuben County Sheriff's Department, and its employees are immune from any Hability for the policy-oriented decisions regarding the allocation of funds from the budget to purchase or install audio/video monitoring equipment[.] ... IC. § 34-4-16.5-8(6). See also, Peavler v. Monroe County Board of Commissioners (1988), 528 N.E.2d 40.

The trial court further noted there was no just reason for delay in the entry of a final order, and accordingly, the court expressly directed the entry of a final judgment as to the issues addressed in its 1989 Judgment.

This case's lengthy history discloses that no appeal was taken from the trial [771]*771court's decision. The 1989 Judgment was a final and appealable order of the court; it cannot now be collaterally attacked. See Ind. Appellate Rule 2. More importantly, Sauders, herself, agreed with the trial court's ruling on the exclusion of the evidence based on the prior grant of Steuben County's motion in limine. At trial, Sauders called her expert witness, Postill. Postill testified that under the Jail Standards intoxicated prisoners are a special class of inmates, which in the absence of video monitoring equipment, require close personal supervision. Postill further defined close supervision as at least checking on the prisoner every 15 minutes. On cross-examination, Steuben County asked Postill if the Standards specified every 15 minutes. Sauders objected to the question and asked the court for relief from the motion in limine. Sauders conceded that the failure to have monitoring equipment as required by the Jail Standards could not be assignable to Steuben County as a basis for liability. Sauders then asked the trial court for relief from its prior motion to show that Postill's testimony would be that, since there was no constant monitoring of intoxicated prisoners, the frequency of checks would have to occur more often to provide reasonable care. This testimony appears to be of the exact nature of the testimony which was elicited from Postill.

Additionally, Sauders stated that the prior ruling would be "fair enough" if she were allowed to bring forth evidence as to how often a reasonable jailer should have checked Sowles absent the presence of audio-video monitoring equipment. The trial court and counsel for Steuben County both agreed to allow Sauders to again mention the lack of monitoring equipment at the jail in 1986. Sauders made no further objection. Sauders cannot now complain of an alleged error, which she has invited, by acquiescing in the trial court's decision. Dept. of Ins. v. Zenith Re-Insurance Co., 596 N.E.2d 228, 230 (Ind.1992); see also St. Anthony Medical Center v. Smith, 592 N.E.2d 732 (Ind.Ct.App.1992), trans. denied (failure to object to allegedly improper evidence at trial waived issue of whether evidence was properly admitted, even though admissibility of evidence was addressed in the motion in limine). Sauders cannot now raise an issue on appeal to which she agreed at trial.

Sauders also contends the trial court erred in instructing the jury as to the affirmative defenses of contributory negligence, assumption of the risk, and incurred risk. More specifically, she argues that such affirmative defenses are not applicable in jail suicide cases.

Sauders concedes that Indiana's Comparative Fault Act does not apply to Steuben County, as it is a government entity, see IND.CODE § 39-4-16.5-3(1) and (2); thus, Sauders' claims fall within the scope of Indiana Tort Claims Act, § 34-4-16.5-1 e seq. See Tittle v. Mahan, 582 N.E.2d 796 (Ind.1991). Pursuant to the Tort Claims Act, the common-law affirmative defenses of contributory negligence, incurred risk, and assumption of the risk preclude an injured party's right of recovery. See IND.CODE § 34-4-33-8. Contributory negligence or incurred risk by an injured person is a complete bar to a claim against a government entity or public employee. Board of Com'rs of Adams County v.

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Related

Sauders v. County of Steuben
693 N.E.2d 16 (Indiana Supreme Court, 1998)

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Bluebook (online)
664 N.E.2d 768, 1996 Ind. App. LEXIS 579, 1996 WL 223616, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sauders-v-county-of-steuben-indctapp-1996.