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Georgia Dep't of Transp. v. Crooms

The Georgia Tort Claims Act's exception to waiver of immunity set forth in O.C.G.A. § 50-21-24 10 established the DOT's immunity from any claim based on a contention that it negligently failed to maintain I-20 in safe condition at the location where the first plaintiff was involved in a single-vehicle fatal accident.

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While driving on Interstate 20 in Greene County in rainy weather, Estelle Meshal Crooms lost control of her vehicle, spun off the road across the grass right-of-way adjacent to the Interstate, and crashed into trees. Crooms was injured in the single-vehicle accident and a passenger in the vehicle, Croom’s minor daughter, Courtney Crooms, was killed. Crooms and her husband, Derick Crooms, sued the Georgia Department of Transportation DOT for the wrongful death of their daughter, injuries suffered by Crooms in the accident, and loss of consortium. The complaint, brought pursuant to the Georgia Tort Claims Act GTCA OCGA § 50-21-20 et seq., alleged that Crooms lost control because her vehicle hydroplaned on rain water, and that the DOT was responsible because it negligently failed to maintain Interstate 20 in a safe condition that would have prevented the accident.

Pursuant to OCGA § 9-11-12 b 1, the DOT moved prior to trial for dismissal of the complaint asserting that, because it had sovereign immunity from the suit under the GTCA, the court lacked subject matter jurisdiction. After considering evidence supporting and opposing the motion, the trial court ruled that the DOT was not immune and denied the motion. The DOT brought this direct appeal.1 For the following reasons, we find the DOT was entitled to sovereign immunity and reverse.

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