School Law Alerts

The Tort Immunity Act barred claims of willful and wanton conduct alleged against the Chicago Board of Education in Green v. Chicago Board of Education, 944 N.E.2d 459 (Ill. App. Ct. 1st Dist. 2011).
 

The plaintiff alleged that in March of 2008, a student at Crane Technical High School in Chicago, IL was fatally shot by another Crane Tech student following a violent altercation on school property. The plaintiff further alleged that after the end of the school day, the students were required to leave the premises while numerous persons were waiting outside with weapons.

Specifically, the plaintiff alleged that the school board failed to provide safe egress for the student, failed to timely notify police of the altercation, failed to provide security, failed to perform security measures, and failed to perform security measures despite a voluntary undertaking. The plaintiff filed suit alleging negligence and willful and wanton conduct. Willful and wanton conduct has been defined as "a course of action which shows an actual or deliberate intention to cause harm or which, if not intentional, shows an utter indifference to or conscious disregard for the safety of others or their property." 745 ILCS 10/1-209.
 

Section 4-102 of the Tort Immunity Act provides immunity to a local public entity for failure to provide police protection service or failure to prevent the commission of crimes. The appellate court noted that this section of the Tort Immunity Act does not list any exceptions to allow for lawsuits that successfully allege willful and wanton conduct unlike other sections of the act.

The plaintiff attempted to argue that Section 3-108 of the Tort Immunity Act was controlling as it contains an exception to allow for claims of willful and wanton conduct. Section 3-108 allows for claims for failure to supervise when an employee or local public entity has a duty to provide supervision imposed by common law, statute, ordinance, code or regulation and the local public entity or public employee is guilty of willful and wanton conduct in its failure to provide supervision proximately causing such injury.

The court found that Section 4-102 was the applicable statute as the facts alleged were more in line with police protection. The ruling in Green v. Chicago Board of Education exemplifies the fine line distinction between an alleged failure to prevent the commission of a crime and a failure to supervise.