Sperry v. Fremont County School District No. 6

84 F. Supp. 3d 1277, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13910, 2015 WL 456518
CourtDistrict Court, D. Wyoming
DecidedFebruary 3, 2015
DocketCase No. 2:13-CV-00179-ABJ
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 84 F. Supp. 3d 1277 (Sperry v. Fremont County School District No. 6) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Wyoming primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sperry v. Fremont County School District No. 6, 84 F. Supp. 3d 1277, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13910, 2015 WL 456518 (D. Wyo. 2015).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANTS’ MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT IN PART AND DENYING IN PART

ALAN B. JOHNSON, District Judge.

Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. 26), Plaintiffs’ opposition (Doc. 28) and Defendants’ further reply (Doc. 29) have come before the Court for consideration. Having considered the pleadings, the applicable law, the parties’ written submissions, and materials offered in support of their respective positions, the Court GRANTS Defendants’ motion in part and DENIES it in part.

BACKGROUND

The undisputed facts are as follows. The Fremont County School District (FCSD) Board of Trustees establishes bus routes with input from the Superintendent and Transportation Supervisor. FCSD has an insurance policy that covers bodily injuries and accidents that result from use of school buses.

Makayla Strahle (Strahle) was an FCSD student who lived on Highway 86 near Crowheart, Wyoming. On December 20, 2011, after Strahle attended a school activity, she caught the FCSD “activity bus” [1280]*1280driven by Fred Peterson. Around 6:50 p.m., the bus arrived at Strahle’s designated drop off location on Highway 86. Per the school district’s established bus route and stops, Peterson stopped the bus on the opposite side of Highway 86 from Strahle’s home. To reach her home, Strahle had to cross both lanes of traffic.

Strahle exited the bus and waited on the right side of the fog line for Peterson’s instruction to cross. From inside the bus, Mr. Peterson motioned for Strahle to cross the highway toward her home. At the same time, a vehicle driven by William Barnes was driving toward the bus in the opposite lane. As Strahle crossed the highway, Barnes’ vehicle struck her. Strahle died at the scene of the accident.

Qn August 19, 2013, Plaintiffs filed their complaint. Plaintiffs bring claims of negligence and wrongful death against all Defendants. Specifically, Plaintiffs allege Defendants’ negligent acts or omissions include: (1) negligent care and protection for the safety and well-being of Strahle; (2) negligent operation of a motor vehicle; (3) negligent failure to keep a proper lookout; (4) negligent failure to ensure the safety and welfare of students riding the bus; (5) negligent routing of school buses; (6) negligent failure to select, supervise and train employees and agents; (7) negligent entrustment of a motor vehicle; (8) negligent failure to use the proper equipment; (9) negligent failure to follow all applicable laws and regulations; (10) negligent operation of school bus routes; (11) negligent procedures for exiting a school bus; (12) negligent failure to properly equip school bus # 13; (13) negligent failure to drop students off in safe locations; (14) negligent activation of school bus lights; (15) negligent failure to warn; (16) negligent instruction to students while exiting school buses and crossing the highway; (17) negligent failure to implement the requisite standards to protect the well-being of Strahle; (18) negligent failure to act reasonably under the circumstances. Next, Plaintiffs claim that all Defendants are liable for negligent infliction of emotional distress to Strahle’s two sisters and her mother, Ms. Sperry. And finally, Plaintiffs claim loss of marital and parental consortium against all Defendants. In the final pretrial conference in this matter, Plaintiffs described their claims as focusing on and falling into two categories: negligent operation of the bus and negligent routing of the bus. Also during the final pretrial conference, Plaintiffs and Defendants agreed and informed the Court that negligent operation of bus lights is no longer a claim before the Court.

In' their motion for summary judgment, Defendants argue that the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act bars Plaintiffs’ claims of negligent design of bus routes and bus stop locations, negligent hiring, negligent training, negligent supervision, negligent entrustment of a vehicle, and failure to properly instruct • students. Docs. 26 and 27. Defendants further argue that the Court should grant summary judgment on the Plaintiffs’ claims of negligent operation of a motor vehicle, negligent entrustment, negligent hiring, negligent supervision, and negligent training because Defendants were not negligent and a genuine issue of material fact does not exist regarding these claims.

DISCUSSION

First, the Court will discuss the immunity provided by the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act, the relevant exceptions to the act, and their application to the case. Next, the Court will discuss the summary judgment standard before turning to its application to the remaining claims.

[1281]*1281I. Wyoming Governmental Claims Act

Under the Wyoming Governmental Claims Act (WGCA), “[a] governmental entity and its public employees while acting within the scope of duties are granted immunity from liability for any tort.” Wyo. Stat. § l-39-104(a). Plaintiffs and Defendants do not dispute that Defendants are entities governed by WGCA — Defendants include a school district, a local governmental entity, and public employees who acted within the scope of their duties as defined in Wyoming Statute section 1-39-103(a). Defendants’ general immunity ' under the WGCA, however, is subject to certain statutory exceptions contained within the WGCA.

The first dispositive issue contained in the parties’ summary judgment briefing is whether any of the WGCA statutory exceptions apply to Defendants in this case and thus waive their WGCA immunity. In their motion for summary judgment, Defendants attempt to prove a negative by arguing that they are immune from select Plaintiffs’ claims because none of the statutory exceptions to the WGCA applies to Defendants or their actions. Defendants focus specifically on the inapplicability of the “motor vehicle exception” and the “insurance coverage exception.” Wyo. Stat. §§ 1-39-105; l-39-118(b). In response, Plaintiffs argue the motor vehicle, insurance coverage, and public utility exceptions all apply and waive Defendants’ immunity under the WGCA. Wyo. Stat. §§ 1-39-105; 1 — 39—118(b); 1-39-108.

a. The “motor vehicle exception”

The motor vehicle exception to the WGCA states, “[a] governmental entity is liable for damages resulting from bodily injury, wrongful death or property damage caused by the negligence of public employees while acting within the scope of their duties in the operation of any motor vehicle, aircraft or watercraft.” Wyo. Stat. § 1-39-105 (emphasis added). Defendants concede that the motor vehicle exception applies and Defendants are not immune from some of Plaintiffs’ claims, including negligent operation of a motor vehicle, negligent activation of bus lights, failure to keep a proper lookout, and failure to follow all applicable laws and regulations.1 (Doc. No. 27, pg. 14).

Nonetheless, Defendants contend that they are immune from Plaintiffs’ claims of negligent hiring, negligent training, negligent supervision, negligent en-trustment of a vehicle, negligent routing, and negligent instructions to a student-pedestrian because the motor vehicle exception does not apply to those claims. The issue becomes whether Defendants’ actions of bus routing, training and supervising bus drivers, entrusting a vehicle to bus drivers, and providing instructions to student-pedestrians constitute “operation of a motor vehicle” under the motor vehicle exception to the WGCA.

The legislature did not define “operation” in the motor vehicle exception to the WGCA. In Harbel v.

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Bluebook (online)
84 F. Supp. 3d 1277, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 13910, 2015 WL 456518, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sperry-v-fremont-county-school-district-no-6-wyd-2015.