Washington v. City and County of San Francisco

The City and County of San Francisco (the City) appeals from a judgment entered after jury verdict awarding respondents damages in their wrongful death action. The City claims that it is immune from liability as a matter of law, that the jury was improperly instructed, and that the evidence was insufficient to support the jury’s verdict. We disagree and affirm.

I. Factual and Procedural Background

Henry Washington was killed on June 28, 1982, in a motor vehicle accident in San Francisco. The motorcycle on which Washington was riding collided with a car driven by Carl Tani.

The accident occurred at the intersection of 13th and Folsom Streets. The Central Freeway, built and maintained by the State of California, runs above 13th Street at that location. It is supported by metal pillars on both sides of 13th Street and along the median strip between the eastbound and westbound lanes. The shadow of the freeway falls on 13th Street, and the pillars on the median obstruct the view of drivers coming toward one another.

On the morning of the accident, Tani was driving to work eastbound on 13th Street. He got into the lane closest to the pillars in order to turn left (north)…