Blankenburg

MEMORANDUM *

Nicholas Blankenburg appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment for the United States, which was based on the Federal Tort Claims Act’s discretionary function exception, 28 U.S.C. § 2680 (a). For the exception to apply, the government must prove that (1) the challenged conduct involves an element of judgment or choice; and (2) the judgment or choice is the type the discretionary function exception was designed to shield, see Berkovitz v. United States, 486 U.S. 531, 536-37 , 108 S.Ct. 1954 , 100 L.Ed.2d 531 (1988), that is, one based on “social, economic, or political policy.” See Summers v. United States, 905 F.2d 1212, 1215 (9th Cir.1990). To determine whether the conduct involved an element of judgment or choice, courts inquire as to whether it was compelled by a federal statute, regulation, or policy. See, e.g., GATX/Airlog Co. v. United States, 286 F.3d 1168, 1173 (9th Cir .2002).

Here, the relevant decision was discretionary, because there was no statute, regulation, or policy prescribing where the Forest Service placed signs. See also Valdez v. United States, 56 F.3d 1177, 1180 (9th Cir.1995) (“Because the [National Park Service] cannot apprise…