Estate of Aten v. City of Tucson

I respectfully dissent.

Today, a majority of this court holds that a public municipality may be liable for injuries caused by a grossly negligent third party seeking to elude apprehension by the police, even in the absence of proof that pursuing law enforcement officers were also grossly negligent.

FACTS

Shortly after midnight on January 18, 1987, Mark Bable came to the attention of three individuals who were operating a motor vehicle in the vicinity of Ft. Lowell and First Avenue in Tucson. These individuals, Phillip and Troy Rankin and Bob Sherman, noticed Bable when Bable “revved up” the…