Jacobs-Peterson v. United States

In September 2010, the Army National Guard (defendant) conducted live-fire training exercises with a .50-caliber machine gun on a range at Army Garrison Camp Williams, which was not authorized for that exercise. The danger of fire was extreme at the time due to dry weather conditions and high winds. The exercises started a fire that spread beyond Camp Williams despite firefighters’ efforts to contain the fire. Herriman City ordered the mandatory evacuation of nearby residents. Smoke and cinders caused damage to the home of Lu Ann Jacobs-Peterson (plaintiff) in the amount of $3,662.70. Also, while Jacobs-Peterson was attempting to secure her horse in a neighbor’s horse trailer, she suffered several physical injuries when the horse shifted in response to smoke blowing into the trailer. Attributing all of her damages to the fire, Jacobs-Peterson filed suit, asserting negligence related to starting the fire, a failure to warn, and a failure to help residents evacuate. The United States (defendant) readily acknowledged its duty not to allow the fire to escape Camp Williams and that it had breached that duty. The United States also acknowledged that it owed Jacobs-Peterson for the damage to her property. However, the United States denied it had a duty to warn Jacobs-Peterson or aid her in evacuating. The United States disagreed that its negligence was the proximate cause of Jacobs-Peterson’s physical injuries because that particular harm was not foreseeable and was too attenuated from the negligent conduct. The United States moved for summary judgment. The United States District Court for the District of Utah found that on the facts submitted, the United States did not have a duty to warn or assist with evacuation and granted summary judgment for the United States on those claims. The district court then considered whether the kind of injuries Jacobs-Peterson suffered were foreseeable and whether the United States’ negligence was the proximate cause of her physical injuries.