Levin v. County of Salem

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

O’HERN, J.

The question in this case is whether the unauthorized use of public property for private recreational activities thereby puts the property “in dangerous condition” under N.J.S.A. 59:4-2 of the New Jersey Tort Claims Act, N.J.S.A 59:1-1 to :12-3 (the Act or the New Jersey Act), when the recreational activities themselves are risky and pose danger to the participants. In this ease a man dove from a county bridge into shallow tidal waters, suffering a paralyzing injury. We conclude that however tragic the accident, its cause was not the…