576 S.W.3d 626
Tenn.2019Background
- Christina Cotten, a psychiatric nurse with prior treatment for depression, attempted suicide by overdose in Jan 2014 while staying with Dr. Jerry Wilson; she was evaluated and discharged after Wilson assured the hospital she would follow up with outpatient care.
- Over 2014 Christina had variable depression, custody losses, and a breakup with Wilson; she handled no firearms evidence of ongoing suicidal ideation was limited and clinicians recorded she denied suicidal ideation in October 2014.
- In late October 2014 Wilson showed Christina a loaded revolver in his home and then, after she was evicted, allowed her to stay alone in his house in early November without securing the gun.
- On November 9, 2014 Christina died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound; Wilson found the loaded gun beside her. Post-mortem evidence revealed secret activities (porn/prostitution) unknown to Wilson and others.
- The Estate sued Wilson for wrongful death alleging negligent storage and facilitation of suicide; the trial court granted summary judgment for Wilson (suicide was an unforeseeable superseding cause), Court of Appeals reversed, and the Tennessee Supreme Court granted review.
- The Tennessee Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals and affirmed summary judgment for Wilson, holding the undisputed facts do not show Christina’s suicide was a reasonably foreseeable probability to Wilson at the time.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duty / foreseeability of suicide as risk from leaving gun accessible | Estate: Wilson knew Christina's mental fragility and prior attempt so showing and leaving the gun made suicide foreseeable | Wilson: No special relationship; suicide was not a reasonably foreseeable probability when he allowed her to stay; therefore no duty to secure gun | Held: No duty based on foreseeability; undisputed facts insufficient to show suicide was a foreseeable probability to Wilson |
| Proximate (legal) cause / superseding intervening cause | Estate: Wilson’s conduct (showing gun, leaving it accessible) was a substantial factor in producing the suicide; triable issue on causation | Wilson: Christina’s intentional, deliberate suicide was an independent superseding cause relieving him of liability | Held: Christina’s suicide was a superseding intervening event because it was not a reasonably foreseeable probability; breaks causal chain; summary judgment for Wilson affirmed |
| Applicability of suicide-rule exceptions (special relationship / custodial / induced insanity / supplier-of-means) | Estate: totality of circumstances or exceptions should apply (Wilson is psychiatrist, prior attempt, he showed gun) | Wilson: Facts do not fit exceptions; he never treated her as patient, was not custodial, did not supply gun or ammo, and lacked notice of imminent risk | Held: Common exceptions do not apply on undisputed record; foreseeability—not categorical exceptions—controls; here no evidence of notice of imminent suicide risk |
| Role of expert testimony (psychiatrists) in creating fact issue | Estate: Expert testimony shows guns are lethal and psychiatrists would secure them; supports foreseeability | Wilson: Experts do not identify conduct or demeanor that would have put Wilson on notice in Nov 2014; testimony insufficient to show foreseeable probability | Held: Experts’ testimony insufficient to create a genuine issue on foreseeability under the facts known to Wilson at the time; no triable issue on proximate cause |
Key Cases Cited
- White v. Lawrence, 975 S.W.2d 525 (Tenn. 1998) (focuses proximate-cause analysis on foreseeability of suicide as a consequence of defendant’s negligence)
- Rains v. Bend of the River, 124 S.W.3d 580 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2003) (suicide rule exceptions and foreseeability when defendant supplied means; demeanor of decedent relevant)
- Lancaster v. Montesi, 390 S.W.2d 217 (Tenn. 1965) (traditional suicide rule: deliberate suicide by one with power of choice is superseding cause)
- Jones v. Stewart, 191 S.W.2d 439 (Tenn. 1946) (early articulation that deliberate suicide ordinarily supersedes prior negligent act)
- McClenahan v. Cooley, 806 S.W.2d 767 (Tenn. 1991) (three-part proximate-cause test emphasizing foreseeability)
- King v. Andersen Cnty., 419 S.W.3d 232 (Tenn. 2013) (foreseeability must be assessed as of time of defendant's acts; injury must be reasonably foreseeable probability)