Tory v. City of Atlanta

Court of Appeals of Georgia

Tory v. City of Atlanta

195 S.E.2d 923, 128 Ga. App. 155, 1973 Ga. App. LEXIS 1421

CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia

DecidedFebruary 12, 1973

Docket47830

StatusPublished

Cited by4 cases

This text of 195 S.E.2d 923 (Tory v. City of Atlanta) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Tory v. City of Atlanta, 195 S.E.2d 923, 128 Ga. App. 155, 1973 Ga. App. LEXIS 1421 (Ga. Ct. App. 1973).

Pincite

Opinion

Bell, Chief Judge.

The municipality’s motion for summary judgment was granted in this suit for damages arising out of a rear end collision involving the plaintiffs automobile and a garbage truck. The defendant pleaded that the truck was in the performance of governmental functions. The affidavit of the driver of the truck, which was not controverted, reveals that after completely loading the truck with garbage collected from apartment complexes he drove to the city’s incinerator and emptied the truck. Thereafter, the collision occurred, while returning to the city’s sanitary department substation where the driver was to leave the truck that he was then operating, and pick up another loaded garbage truck for delivery to the incinerator. Held:

We affirm. While the plaintiff admits that garbage collection is a governmental function, the performance of which grants to a city immunity from liability for the negligent acts of its officers and employees, as was clearly held in City of Brunswick v. Volpian, 67 Ga. App. 654, 655 (21 SE2d 442) and Ethridge v. City of Lavonia, 101 Ga. App. 190 (112 SE2d 822), it is argued that these cases are distinguishable since at the time of the accident the truck was not actively in the operation of removing garbage from residences, the governmental function. The fact that no garbage was *156 actually being hauled or collected at the time of the collision does not remove the operation out of the governmental function. "This governmental immunity from liability extends to the use of motor vehicles in connection with the performance or accomplishment of the governmental function.” Foster v. Crowder, 117 Ga. App. 568, 569 (161 SE2d 364).

Argued January 3, 1973 — Decided February 12, 1973. J. Ralph McClelland, Jr., for appellant. Henry L. Bowden, Henry R. Bauer, Jr., for appellee.

Judgment affirmed.

Deen and Quillian, JJ., concur.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Bell, Chief Judge.

The municipality’s motion for summary judgment was granted in this suit for damages arising out of a rear end collision involving the plaintiffs automobile and a garbage truck. The defendant pleaded that the truck was in the performance of governmental functions. The affidavit of the driver of the truck, which was not controverted, reveals that after completely loading the truck with garbage collected from apartment complexes he drove to the city’s incinerator and emptied the truck. Thereafter, the collision occurred, while returning to the city’s sanitary department substation where the driver was to leave the truck that he was then operating, and pick up another loaded garbage truck for delivery to the incinerator. Held:

We affirm. While the plaintiff admits that garbage collection is a governmental function, the performance of which grants to a city immunity from liability for the negligent acts of its officers and employees, as was clearly held in City of Brunswick v. Volpian, 67 Ga. App. 654, 655 (21 SE2d 442) and Ethridge v. City of Lavonia, 101 Ga. App. 190 (112 SE2d 822), it is argued that these cases are distinguishable since at the time of the accident the truck was not actively in the operation of removing garbage from residences, the governmental function. The fact that no garbage was *156 actually being hauled or collected at the time of the collision does not remove the operation out of the governmental function. "This governmental immunity from liability extends to the use of motor vehicles in connection with the performance or accomplishment of the governmental function.” Foster v. Crowder, 117 Ga. App. 568, 569 (161 SE2d 364).

Argued January 3, 1973 — Decided February 12, 1973. J. Ralph McClelland, Jr., for appellant. Henry L. Bowden, Henry R. Bauer, Jr., for appellee.

Judgment affirmed.

Deen and Quillian, JJ., concur.

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)

195 S.E.2d 923, 128 Ga. App. 155, 1973 Ga. App. LEXIS 1421, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/tory-v-city-of-atlanta-gactapp-1973.

Opinion

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack