By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS
Tribune Staff Reporter
lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
A RECENT court ruling has dismissed an application for judgment in a negligence case filed by Precious Thompson-Curry, who was shot by a police officer while standing in her own yard.
The case stems from an incident on June 26, 2021, when Thompson-Curry was shot by a police officer while in her yard on Amos Ferguson Street, New Providence.
She filed a claim for damages, alleging that the officer, acting under the direction of the Commissioner of Police, negligently shot her.
The claimant sought special damages of $53,481.98, as well as further claims for general, exemplary, aggravated, and punitive damages. The claim detailed the officer’s failure to ensure her safety, exposing her to a foreseeable risk of injury.
The defendants admitted that Ms Thompson-Curry was shot but denied any negligence or recklessness, arguing the shooting was unintentional and occurred during a police operation to apprehend a suspect.
In support of her case, Ms Thompson-Curry presented a letter from the former Commissioner of Police, apologising for the incident, and a letter from the defendants’ counsel acknowledging the shooting but disputing negligence. The defendants’ defence admitted the shooting but maintained the officer acted in self-defence and to prevent further harm, asserting that the incident was accidental.
Senior Justice Deborah Fraser found that while the defendants acknowledged the shooting, their language did not constitute a clear admission of negligence.
The admission of facts like the shooting itself did not fulfill the requirements for judgment on admission, as the defendants denied negligence.
In the ruling, Justice Fraser said that the admissions, though acknowledging the shooting, were not enough to establish clear liability or negligence.
She emphasised that the law requires “clear, unequivocal, and unambiguous” admissions for judgment on admission.
“The admission must be in writing and unambiguous,” the judge noted.
The judge also referenced past cases in which partial or unclear admissions failed to meet the standard required for judgment without a trial.
The issue of negligence — whether the officer had a duty of care, breached it, and caused Thompson-Curry’s injuries — was still in dispute.
As a result, Justice Fraser dismissed the application for judgment on admission and ordered the case to proceed to trial. Both sides were directed to bear their own costs associated with the application for judgment on admission.
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