A mother took her children to school and walked the youngest to her first-grade classroom. She stayed and observed the class for an hour, as parents did almost every day. The roadway and sidewalk by the school entrance were very icy, and there had been an automobile accident shortly before school opened. Concerned for the safety of the children and employees, the principal decided to lock the front door so that no one would walk out to the road by the entrance. There were several exits in the rear of the building, which opened on the fenced-in schoolyard. These exits were in the coatrooms attached to each classroom and were not visible from the lobby or the classrooms themselves. All the children, teachers, and staff knew where these exits were. When the mother was ready to leave the school, she tried to exit by the front door, the only entry she had ever used. When she found it locked, she tried unsuccessfully to locate someone to open it. Meanwhile, the principal and staff were all in the basement searching for rock salt they had not used since last year to de-ice the entryway steps. After the mother had waited 15 minutes by the door, the school secretary came upstairs, saw her, and let her out. On the advice of her husband, a former law student, the mother sues the school for false imprisonment.