Gomez

Snell & Wilmer, Richard A. Derevan and Janet Hickson, Irvine, for Real Parties in Interest.

"Every one who offers to the public to carry persons, property, or messages, excepting only telegraphic messages, is a common carrier of whatever he thus offers to carry." (Civ.Code, § 2168.) [1] The question we must decide is whether the operator of a certain amusement park ride is a common carrier under this definition.

We answer the question in the affirmative and grant a petition for writ of mandate challenging an order sustaining without leave to amend demurrers to two causes of action seeking to hold the operator of such a ride liable under two statutes applicable to common carriers.

Because this writ proceeding concerns a trial court ruling at the pleading stage, we take the facts—including the description of the amusement park ride at issue—from the complaint, the allegations of which are deemed true for the limited purpose of determining whether plaintiff has stated viable causes of action. ( Stevenson v. Superior Court (1997) 16 Cal.4th 880, 885 , 66 Cal.Rptr.2d 888 , 941 P.2d 1157 .)

In June 2000, Cristina Moreno, a young woman from Spain on her honeymoon,…