Brownell v. Los Angeles Unified School District

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) appeals following a $120,000 jury verdict arising from an incident in which a student, Ernest P. Brownell III, was shot and wounded by gang members. The shooting occurred immediately after school hours and on a public street adjacent to school property. Brownell alleged negligent supervision in that LAUSD personnel had dismissed the students after school without first ascertaining if the street in front of the school was free of any gang members.

In somewhat related contentions, LAUSD asserts that (1) the trial court erred in denying its motion for judgment on the pleadings because the claim for damages, filed pursuant to provisions of the claims statute (Gov. Code, § 910 et seq.), failed to include a claim for negligent supervision, (2) no liability could ensue for a student’s injury which occurred after school and off school premises, and (3) a claim of negligent supervision cannot prevail where LAUSD satisfied its duty of reasonable care to protect against known or reasonably foreseeable risks where the school had no indication prior to the students’ dismissal after school that any gang-related incident was threatened or…