Police - gun issued to officer - police authority owing duty care to claimant injured by officer misusing gun

Attorney-General of the British Virgin Islands v Hartwell: PC (Lord Nicholls of Birkenhead, Lord Hope of Craighead, Lord Walker of Gestingthorpe, Baroness Hale of Richmond and Lord Brown of Eaton-under-Heywood): 23 February 2004

The claimant was seriously injured when a police officer, having abandoned his post, entered a crowded bar where his girlfriend worked as a waitress and in a fit of jealous rage fired four shots at her with his police service revolver.

The claimant claimed damages for negligence against the Attorney-General, representing the Government of the British Virgin Islands, relying on two earlier incidents as demonstrating that the officer was not a fit person to be given access to firearms.

The claim was dismissed by the judge but allowed on the claimant's appeal to the Court of Appeal of the British Virgin Islands.

The defendant appealed to the Privy Council.

James Guthrie QC (instructed by Charles Russell) for the defendant; James Dingemans QC and Sarah Crowther (instructed by Collyer-Bristow) for the claimant.

Held, dismissing the appeal, that when entrusting a police officer with a gun the police authorities owed to the public at large a duty to take reasonable care to see the officer was a suitable person to be entrusted with such a dangerous weapon lest by any misuse of it he inflicted personal injury, whether accidentally or intentionally, on other persons; that, therefore, a duty of care was owed to the claimant; and that, in view of the relaxed and surprisingly casual response of senior officers to the earlier incidents involving the officer, there had been a sufficient breach of that duty to found liability in negligence (WLR).