PLAINTIFF’S DECEDENT COMMITTED SUICIDE BY JUMPING FROM THE GEORGE WASHINGTON BRIDGE; THE COMPLAINT ALLEGING PORT AUTHORITY FAILED TO MAINTAIN THE BRIDGE IN A SAFE CONDITION SHOULD NOT HAVE BEEN DISMSSED (FIRST DEPT).

The First Department, reversing (modifying) Supreme Court, determined the complaint alleging defendant Port Authority breached its duty to maintain the George Washington Bridge (GWB) in a reasonably safe condition must be reinstated. Plaintiff’s decedent committed suicide by jumping from the bridge:

Plaintiff’s decedent died by suicide when he jumped from the George Washington Bridge (GWB), which is owned and operated by the Port Authority. Contrary to the Port Authority’s contention that the complaint is addressed to actions taken in its governmental capacity, both this Court and the Second Department have recently held, in cases involving similar facts, that the Port Authority’s responsibility for maintaining the guardrail on the pedestrian walkway over the Bridge is a proprietary function rather than a governmental function … . .. [P]laintiff states a cause of action by alleging that the Port Authority, as a property owner, “failed to maintain the GWB in a reasonably safe condition by negligently failing to install suicide barriers along the walkways to prevent suicides,” thus presenting a foreseeable risk of harm in light of the allegations concerning the history of the George Washington Bridge’s walkway as a place where frequent suicides occur. Lomtevas v City of New York, 2021 NY Slip Op 06953, First Dept 12-14-21