Facts
In May 2018, errant gunfire struck a minor child (referred to her as GAP) in College Park, Georgia. A 911 call was made around 12:01 a.m. to South Fulton Fire and Police Departments. College Park police and EMS Ventures were all dispatched to the incident. Emergency personnel arrived 30 minutes later. By that time, GAP had suffered a large amount of blood loss and was pronounced dead at 7:55 a.m. A medical examiner performed an autopsy and opined that GAP would have survived had help arrived sooner.
Frank Payton, Donese Payton, and the Estate of GAP filed a complaint for wrongful death against EMS Ventures, Inc., the City of College Park, and the City of South Fulton. Defendants College Park and City of South Fulton filed motions to dismiss the complaint as the ante litem notices sent to each city failed to assert the specific amount of monetary damages being sought. The ante litem notices stated that they were seeking an amount “not less than $1,000,000.”
The trial court granted the motion to dismiss based on the improper ante litem notices and dismissed the case as to College Park and City of South Fulton. The Plaintiffs appealed and the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court ruling.
Issue and Holding
The main issue in this case was whether Plaintiffs’ ante litem notices seeking “not less than $1,000,000” met the statutory requirement for ante litem notice. The Court of Appeals held that this was not sufficient to state the specific amount of monetary damages being sought.
Reasoning
Georgia law provides that a party with a claim for monetary damages against a municipality must first present an ante litem notice to the city. The notice must include “the time, place, and extent of the injury, as nearly as practicable, and the negligence which caused the injury.” The law further requires that the ante litem notice must include “the specific amount of monetary damages being sought from the municipal corporation.” OCGA § 36-33-5.
Here, the Plaintiffs’ ante litem notices sought “an amount not less than $1,000,000.” This is not a specific amount as there is no clear amount what Plaintiffs are seeking as required by the law. The Court of Appeals relied on prior decisions, including Brandenburg v. City of Vidalia, 366 Ga. App. 51 (2022), in concluding that this did not comply with the statutory requirement that the notice include a specific amount of monetary damages being sought.
Conclusion
Payton reemphasizes the need to have a specific amount demanded when serving an ante litem notice to a municipality.
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Citation: Payton et al. v. City of College Park et al., No. A22A0739 (Ga. Ct. App. June 27, 2023)
