Sutton v. State

This action is brought by Claimants pursuant to 111. Rev. Stat., ch. 37, par. 439.8 vesting in this Court exclusive jurisdiction in all claims against Respondent, the State of Illinois, for damages in cases sounding in tort. Claimants are the owners and possessors of a 65-acre tract adjacent to the Mermet Wildlife Refuge, owned and operated by Respondent as a hunting area for water fowl and to provide a facility for fishing. The water supply of the Claimants consists of a 22-foot deep water well characterized as a “shallow well,” which for years prior to 1974 produced sufficient fresh, pure…