George Garcia, Jr. v. United States

MEMORANDUM

In this Federal Tort Claims Act action, Plaintiff George Garcia, Jr., claims that the United States was negligent when it failed to post speed limit signs along a certain roadway pursuant to a 1987 Bureau of Land Management Recreation Area Management Plan (“RAMP”) for the Imperial' Sand Dunes Recreation Area. In 2009, Plaintiff was riding his off-road motorcycle across that roadway when he was seriously injured by a speeding dune buggy. The district court granted the government’s motion for summary judgment, holding that the action was barred by (1) the discretionary function exception to the Federal Tort Claims Act and (2) the primary assumption of risk doctrine under California law. Reviewing de novo, we reverse and remand. Oswalt v. Resolute Indus., Inc., 642 F.3d 856, 859 (9th Cir.2011).

1. The government’s failure to post any 15 MPH signs along the sand highways in the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area is not a policy choice protected by the discretionary function exception. The government made an express policy decision in the RAMP to post the speed limit signs along the sand highways. See Berkovitz ex rel. Berkovitz v. United States, 486 U.S. 531, 536 , 108…