Silano v. Bd. of Educ. of The City of Bridgeport

129 Conn.App. 682

21 A.3d 899

Pasquale SILANO, Sr., et al.

v.BOARD OF EDUCATION OF the CITY OF BRIDGEPORT et al.

No. 32195.

Appellate Court of Connecticut.

Argued April 27, 2011.Decided June 28, 2011.

OPINION TEXT STARTS HEREAppeal from Superior Court, Judicial District of Fairfield, Levin, J. Laurence V. Parnoff, Stratford, for the appellants (plaintiffs).Peter D. Clark, Shelton, for the appellees (named defendant et al.).Betsy A. Edwards, associate city attorney, for the appellee (defendant Alaine Lane).BEACH, ALVORD and MIHALAKOS, Js.PER CURIAM.

The plaintiffs, Pasquale Silano, Jr. (Pasquale), and his parents, Pasquale Silano, Sr., and Francine Silano, appeal from the judgment rendered by the trial court in favor of the defendants, the board of education of the city of Bridgeport (board), James Connelly, Roberto Rodriguez and Alaine Lane. On appeal, we consider whether (1) the evidence was insufficient to support the court's factual findings and (2) the court improperly concluded that certain claims did not fall within the identifiable person-imminent harm exception to the immunity generally afforded municipalities for the negligent performance of discretionary acts. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The court's memorandum of decision and the record reveal the following relevant facts. Pasquale Silano, Sr., and Francine Silano, individually and as parents and next friends of Pasquale, brought a ten count complaint against the defendants alleging that Pasquale had been subjected to harassment, threats and physical assaults while he was a student in the Bridgeport public schools. In counts one through four of the complaint, respectively, the plaintiffs alleged that the board, Connelly, as the superintendent of the Bridgeport schools, Rodriguez, as the principal of the Waltersville School in Bridgeport, and Lane, as the principal of Benjamin Franklin Education Center in Bridgeport, negligently failed to fulfill their duty to protect Pasquale from physical and emotional threats and harassment by other students both on school grounds and while being transported on the school bus. As a result of the defendants' alleged failure to keep Pasquale safe from harm, the plaintiffs claimed that he suffered various injuries, including an infringement of his civil rights. In counts six through nine, the plaintiffs essentially mirrored the allegations asserted in counts one through four but claimed that the defendants' failure to fulfill their duties was reckless rather than negligent. In the fifth and tenth counts, Pasquale's parents incorporated the allegations of the previous counts and sought to recover incurred expenses in connection with Pasquale's care. In response, the defendants alleged several special defenses, including governmental immunity.

The court's findings of facts, as reflected in its April 7, 2010 memorandum of decision, can be summarized as follows. In 1996, Pasquale entered the Waltersville School and was assigned to a classroom for children with learning disabilities. In February, 1996, Pasquale's parents, through their attorney, sent a letter to Connelly indicating that Pasquale had returned home from school with bruises and injuries and requested that Pasquale be transferred to another location for schooling. Alexander Norwood, the associate superintendent of schools, replied to Pasquale Silano, Sr., and Francine Silano, stating that he spoke to Rodriguez and was assured that the students were supervised while at school and while being transported to school on the bus.

Subsequently, while he was attending the Benjamin Franklin Education Center, the board conducted a psychological study of Pasquale that indicated that he had a full-scale intelligence quotient of...