Sammy Ives, age 11, was camping with his family at a remote campsite in a National Forest in Utah.  Prior to their arrival, a group of friends were camping about a mile away when one of the campers was attacked by a bear while sleeping in his tent. The man yelled to his friends in other tents and they were able to scare the bear away with pistol shots and throwing rocks at it.  The man did report the bear attack to the Utah County dispatch; the dispatcher advised the man she would notify the Forest Service and told him to also call the highway patrol, which he did.  The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (US Forest Service) was also notified. 

The Division of Wildlife Resources has a three-tier classification system for bears that present a threat to the public.  This bear was classified at level 3, which basically states that aggressive behavior and lack of fear require the animal to be destroyed because of their risk to public safety.  The Division of Wildlife Resources searched for the bear until dusk - and intended to resume search the next day. 

Sammy's family arrived at the campsite that evening and due to their lack of funds, were given the okay to camp slightly up the road from the campsite where the original attack occurred.  They retired at 9 pm.  Sometime that evening, the bear pulled Sammy from the tent and killed him. His body was found 400 yards away from the campsite.

Sammy's parent sued the federal government under the Federal Claims Torts Act alleging that their son's death was caused by the negligence of the employees of the Forest Preserve for failure to manage a safe camping area, failure to close the remote campsite due to the presence of a dangerous animal, and failure to warn the family of the presence of a dangerous wild animal. The family contended had they known about the bear, they would not have camped at that site. There was evidence that the US Forest Service Preserve employee did not notify others in the Wildlife Division as she did not go to work after she was made aware of the first attack due to childcare issues and no warning signs were in fact posted about this specific incident.

The government denied any negligence on their part or any act of omissions by their employees in causing Sammy's death.  They stated that all campsites have warnings about bears and that Sammy's parents were not diligent in ensuring their site was free of food being left out which would have attracted wild animals.   The government also contended that the United States is immune from suit under the discretionary function exception to the Federal Tort Claim Act. 

 

 

Damages:

Sammy sustained numerous injuries from the bear attack and died that evening.  He was 11 years old and left behind his mother, father, brother, and stepfather. His family is seeking recovery from wrongful death damages. 

 What is the basis for legal liability?

• What elements exist in this case?
• What factors and/or defenses can the United States Government use for claims made by Sammy's estate? 
• What decisions would you make regarding this case:
  • Liability
  • Damages
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