On January 17, 2019, the Connecticut Supreme Court issued an important decision on governmental immunity for Connecticut municipalities. In Ventura v. Town of East Haven, an appeal handled for the Town by Aaron Bayer and Tadhg Dooley of Wiggin and Dana, LLP, the Supreme Court affirmed an Appellate Court decision reversing a $6.2 million judgment against East Haven. The judgment was based on a police officer's failure to tow a vehicle that had invalid registration and the wrong license plates. That vehicle subsequently struck the plaintiff, causing him serious injuries. The trial court had held that the Town was not protected by governmental immunity, because the police officer had a “ministerial duty” to tow the vehicle based on police department towing rules. A jury awarded the plaintiff $12.2 million, which was later reduced to $6.2 million. In reversing, the Appellate Court held that the towing rules did not impose a ministerial duty on police officers and the Town was therefore entitled to governmental immunity.
