Can I sue a Georgia government entity for violating my rights in State Court?
Yes. The Georgia Legislature has passed a law, partially waiving the immunity for the actions of government actors of the various entities of the State of Georgia, for lawsuits filed in Georgia courts, by the “Georgia Tort Claims Act” and/or by statutes specific to Counties and Municipalities. This provides for a limited waiver of immunity for lawsuits against State and County entities – for municipalities there is a separate statute partially mirroring the GTCA – in certain narrow circumstances. Generally speaking liability is waived for failure to act in accordance with a “ministerial” act, one which is a simple, mandatory action, required under a law or policy – such as the requirement to respond to a 911 call; but, NOT for failure to perform “discretionary” acts – such as when to make an arrest or how to respond to a 911 call. Liability for a State or County entity is also NOT waived, where the government actor commits an “intentional” tort, such as an assault or battery – as this
