Denney v. United States

MURRAH, Circuit Judge.

Appellant, as administrator of the estate of William Myre Denney, brought this action under the Federal Tort Claims Act, 28 U.S.C.A. 931 (now Section 1346), seeking damages for the wrongful death of his decedent, who was killed by an uuexploded artillery shell, left upon a target range of the United States in Dona Ana County, New Mexico. The basis of liability is an alleged public nuisance; and negligence in the operation of an ultrahazardous activity. As the trier of the facts, the trial court found that although the “shells or duds” were “a dangerous instrumentality…