Garrenv.Bryant
After inmate Larry Burden died following repeated complaints of chest pain and a collapse in the prison yard, his mother sued several correctional officers for wrongful death, alleging they failed to carry out ministerial emergency-response duties imposed by prison policies and training. The officers claimed official immunity. The Court of Appeals of Georgia affirmed in part and reversed in part. It held that some of the alleged emergency-response obligations, including duties tied to checking and having an AED available, were sufficiently specific to support ministerial-duty claims against most of the officers, so dismissal on immunity grounds was not warranted across the board. But the court concluded that one newly hired cadet, Moore, could not be held on the same theory because there was no evidence he knew the policies or had the training that would make those duties ministerial as to him.
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