Tims v. Hasselberger

No question of material fact remained as to whether the defendants knew that the plaintiff's son would attend a party at their home in their absence and that he would voluntarily ingest prescription drugs, which a third party sold to him.

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Dolores Hasselberger filed a wrongful death action against Frances Nadine Tims and Michael Anthony Tims after her 16-year-old son, Greg Wade Murray, died after consuming alcohol and methadone pills at a party hosted by the Timses’ son while they were out of town.1 The Timses filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that there was no evidence of negligence on their part, and the trial court denied the motion. Upon our grant of their application for interlocutory appeal, the Timses appeal the denial of their motion for summary judgment by the trial court. We reverse, for reasons that follow. A trial court properly grants summary judgment when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.2 “A de novo standard of review applies to an appeal from a grant or denial of summary judgment, and we view the evidence, and all reasonable conclusions and inferences drawn from it, in the light most favorable to the nonmovant.”3

Construing the facts most favorably to Hasselberger, the evidence shows that the Timses went out of town for the weekend of May 14-15, 2005. Before they left, Mrs. Tims told their 17-year-old son, Justin, that he was not to stay at their home, he was not to invite anyone to their house, and he was not to have any parties at the residence while they were out of town. Justin told his mother that he would stay either with a friend or with his employer; he told his father that he would be spending the night with a friend.

Tims v. Hasselberger

No question of material fact remained as to whether the defendants knew that the plaintiff's son would attend a party at their home in their absence and that he would voluntarily ingest prescription drugs, which a third party sold to him.

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