Bartley H. O'TOOle Lilly E. O'TOOle v. United States

The O’Tooles have a ranch upstream from government-owned property held in trust by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. They allege that the BIA’s negligent maintenance of the irrigation system on its property caused the river to back up onto their land, resulting in considerable damage. The district court dismissed the case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, finding that the government’s actions fell within the discretionary function'exception to the Federal Tort Claims Act. We hold that the BIA’s decision to spend' its limited funds in other ways, allowing the irrigation system to fall into disrepair, is not protected by the discretionary function exception to the FTCA.

I. BACKGROUND

The O’Tooles own Home Ranch, an 800-acre ranch in Nye County, Nevada, used primarily for raising livestock and hay production. Home Ranch’s water and irrigation systems are supplied by the Reese River. Downstream on the Reese River from Home Ranch is Bowler Ranch. Bowler Ranch was purchased by the United States in 1937, when it became part of the Yomba Shoshone Indian Reservation. The land is held in trust for the Shoshone Indian Tribe by the United States, under the direct control of the BIA, and…