Deputy may sue county for injuries suffered while pursuing suspect

By Michelle A. Corsi

The “professional-rescue” doctrine does not bar the personal-injury claim of a sheriff’s deputy against the county after another officer injured him while they were pursuing a suspect, the Washington Supreme Court recently held.

In Beaupre v. Pierce County, no. 79976-8 (Sep. 13, 2007), Pierce County sheriff’s deputy Curtis Beaupre and several other officers were pursuing a criminal suspect who was driving the wrong way on the Interstate 5 freeway. They used several measures to stop the suspect’s vehicle. Thinking that the suspect was stopping, Beaupre exited his vehicle, but the suspect kept driving. Beaupre ran alongside the suspect’s vehicle, drew his gun, and ordered the suspect to stop. Another patrol car then struck Beaupre, causing him to fly several feet and land in front of the suspect’s vehicle, which then ran over Beaupre and severely injured him.

Beaupre sued the Pierce County for damages that exceeded those he had received through worker’s compensation. The County moved for summary judgment, arguing that under the professional-rescue doctrine, being hit by another patrol car was inherent in this rescue operation, so that Beaupre could not recover for his injuries. The professional-rescue doctrine bars professional rescuers from recovering for injuries because they assume certain hazards that are unique to and generally associated with the particular rescue activity.

The trial court denied the County’s summary judgment motion. The County sought discretionary review before the Court of Appeals, and the case was transferred to the Washington Supreme Court.