Dorothy Roberts, W.C. Shepherd, Robert L. Gee, Carl Stephens v. United States of America, Louise Nunamaker v. United States

The widows of two men who died from leukemia four years after contamination by radioactive fallout produced by the venting of an underground nuclear test, appeal from the district court’s judgment in favor of the Government and denial of their motion to reopen the trial in their wrongful death action against the United States brought under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) 28 U.S.C. §§ 2671-80 (1982). The claims were tried in the District Court of Nevada from January 15 to April 5, 1979. On June 8, 1982, the court found the Government was negligent in its handling of evacuation from Area 12 after the venting occurred and in its decontamination of the exposed workers. On January 20, 1983 the court ruled in favor of the Government on questions of radiation dose and causation, finding that Roberts’ maximum dose was 0.42 rem and Nunamaker’s was 0.08 rem and that the radiation exposure did not cause Roberts’ and Nunamaker’s leu-kemias. On May 4, 1984 Roberts and Nu-namaker moved to reopen to provide more evidence and on June 1, 1984 they supplied additional legal arguments to reopen. On June 14, 1984 the court filed its findings and conclusions; on January 4, 1985 it entered…