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Florida’s Private Prison Industry a State Agency Entitled to Sovereign Immunity
Florida's Private Prison Industry a State Agency Entitled to Sovereign Immunity
Florida's First District Court of Appeal has held that Florida's private prison industry, Prison Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises (PRIDE), is a state agency entitled to sovereign immunity and notice of suit requirements under §768.28 (7), Florida statutes.
That ruling came after Bradford County Circuit Court denied PRIDE's motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a woman who sustained injuries in a 1988 automobile accident in which she collided with a cow owned by PRIDE and negligently allowed to run free on the highway.
The First District held that under §946.5026, Fla. Statutes, PRIDE "is deemed to be a corporation primarily acting as an instrumentality of the State" and that "the provisions of §768.28 shall be applicable." Thus, the trial court's order was reversed with directions to dismiss the suit because the Florida Department of Insurance had not been served as a party to the suit with 120 days. See: Prison Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises v. Betterson, 648 So.2d 778 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992).
Florida's First District Court of Appeal has held that Florida's private prison industry, Prison Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises (PRIDE), is a state agency entitled to sovereign immunity and notice of suit requirements under §768.28 (7), Florida statutes.
That ruling came after Bradford County Circuit Court denied PRIDE's motion to dismiss a lawsuit brought by a woman who sustained injuries in a 1988 automobile accident in which she collided with a cow owned by PRIDE and negligently allowed to run free on the highway.
The First District held that under §946.5026, Fla. Statutes, PRIDE "is deemed to be a corporation primarily acting as an instrumentality of the State" and that "the provisions of §768.28 shall be applicable." Thus, the trial court's order was reversed with directions to dismiss the suit because the Florida Department of Insurance had not been served as a party to the suit with 120 days. See: Prison Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises v. Betterson, 648 So.2d 778 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992).
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Related legal case
Diversified Enterprises v. Betterson
| Year | 1992 |
|---|---|
| Cite | 648 So.2d 778 (Fla. 1st DCA 1992). |
| Level | State Court of Appeals |
| Injunction Status | N/A |