the University of Texas System Operating as the University of Texas at El Paso v. Kenneth Palomino

OPINION

STEVEN L. HUGHES, Justice

Kenneth Palomino was working on a class project in the university machine shop, using one side of a double-ended pedestal grinder to polish a piece of metal, when his hand was caught in the grinder and crushed. Palomino sued the university under the Texas Tort Claims Act, alleging in part that the university was liable for negligently providing him with a grinder that “was devoid of any protector guard[.]” We must determine whether this case falls within the Tort Claims Act’s “use” exception to governmental immunity under the integral safety component doctrine.…