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*********************************************** 
ANGELA BORELLI, ADMINISTRATRIX (ESTATE

OF BRANDON GIORDANO) v. ANTHONY

RENALDI ET AL.

(SC 20232)

Robinson, C. J., and Palmer, McDonald, D’Auria,

Mullins, Kahn and Ecker, Js.*

Syllabus

The plaintiff, the administratrix of the estate of the decedent, B, sought to

recover damages for the death of B as a result of the alleged negligence

of the defendants, the town of Seymour and three officers of the Seymour

Police Department. B was a backseat passenger in a vehicle operated

by E. E had activated underglow lights that were affixed to the undercarriage of the vehicle, the use of which are illegal, and an officer of the

Seymour Police Department, observing the lights, pursued E’s vehicle

in an attempt to pull E over. In response to the pursuit, E operated

his vehicle at a high rate of speed, and, after the officer activated his

emergency lights and siren, he notified dispatch that he was in pursuit

of E’s vehicle. Within two minutes of the start of the pursuit, E’s vehicle

struck an embankment and flipped onto its roof, causing injuries to B

that ultimately resulted in his death. The plaintiff alleged, inter alia,

that the officer negligently pursued E’s vehicle, the shift supervisor

negligently failed to follow department protocol and failed to order the

termination of the pursuit, and the defendant town was liable pursuant

to statute (§ 52-557n (a) (1) (A)) for the negligent acts of its employees

and was required to indemnify the defendant officers. The trial court

granted the defendants’ motion for summary judgment, concluding that

they were entitled to governmental immunity and that the plaintiff’s

claim regarding indemnification also failed as a matter of law. In concluding that the defendants were immune from liability, the court reasoned

that, although the statute (§ 14-283 (d)) governing the operation of emergency vehicles and the town pursuit policy required police officers, in

determining whether to initiate a pursuit, to drive with due regard for the

safety of the general public, that mandate necessarily required officers

to exercise their judgment and that their duty under those provisions,

therefore, was discretionary. The trial court rendered judgment for the

defendants, from which the plaintiff appealed. Held:

1. This court having concluded that § 14-283 (d), the uniform statewide

pursuit policy set forth in the applicable state regulations (§§ 14-283a1 through 14-283a-4), and the town pursuit policy require officers to

exercise judgment in determining whether to pursue a fleeing motorist,

the trial court correctly concluded that the defendant officers had a

discretionary, rather than a ministerial, duty under § 14-283 (d) to drive

with due regard for the safety of all persons and property and, therefore,

were entitled to immunity from liability for their decision to pursue E’s

vehicle: the phrase ‘‘due regard’’ in § 14-283 (d) imposes a general duty

on officers to exercise their judgment and discretion in a reasonable

manner, and, therefore, the duty to act with due regard is a discretionary

one, and the imposition of a discretionary duty under § 14-283 (d) was

further supported by prior cases of this court that have interpreted

similar statutory language to create a discretionary, rather than a ministerial, duty to act; moreover, the uniform statewide pursuit policy set

forth in §§ 14-283a-1 through 14-283a-4 of the state regulations reinforces

the discretionary nature of the duty of officers in the context of police

pursuits, as that policy requires officers to evaluate the particular circumstances presented and to weigh the risks presented by pursuing a vehicle

against the risks presented by not pursuing; furthermore, the language

of the town pursuit policy also reinforces the discretionary nature of

the duty imposed on the defendant officers, as that language makes

clear that they are required to exercise their judgment and discretion

in evaluating the particular circumstances in determining whether to

engage in and to continue a pursuit.

2. The trial court correctly determined that the plaintiff had failed to prove

that the identifiable person-imminent harm exception to discretionary
act immunity applied, as the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that B was

an identifiable person or a member of a class of foreseeable victims:

the record revealed that B was not legally compelled to get into E’s

vehicle and was a voluntary passenger, and, thus, the plaintiff failed to

demonstrate that B was a member of a class of foreseeable victims;

moreover, notwithstanding the plaintiff’s suggestion that, because § 14-

283 (d) requires officers to drive with due regard for the safety of

the general public, B belonged to a class of foreseeable victims, that

suggestion was inconsistent with both this court’s prior interpretations

of the scope of the identifiable person-imminent harm exception and

the public policy principles underlying the grant of governmental immunity to the discretionary acts of municipal officers; furthermore, the

plaintiff’s argument that B was an identifiable person implicated the

same public policy principle as her argument that he was a member of

a class of foreseeable victims, as, in the context of a police pursuit,

there always will be at least one person whose presence the police

could or should be aware of, namely, the driver of the pursued vehicle,

and, if this court agreed with the plaintiff, the exception would swallow

the rule.

(Two justices concurring separately in two opinions;

one justice dissenting in one opinion)

Argued April 29, 2019—officially released June 24, 2020**

Procedural History

Action to recover damages for, inter alia, the death

of the plaintiff’s decedent as a result of the alleged

negligence of the named defendant et al., and for other

relief, brought to the Superior Court in the judicial district of Ansonia-Milford, where the defendants filed

apportionment complaints against Angela Borelli and

Eric Ramirez; thereafter, the court, Tyma, J., granted

the defendants’ motion for summary judgment and rendered judgment thereon, from which the plaintiff

appealed. Affirmed.

Steven J. Errante, with whom were Matthew D. Popilowski and, on the brief, Daniel P. Scholfield and Marisa A. Bellair, for the appellant (plaintiff).

Thomas R. Gerarde, with whom was Kristan M. Maccini, for the appellees (defendants).
Opinion

KAHN, J. This appeal requires us to consider the

narrow question of whether a town and its municipal

police officers are shielded by governmental and qualified immunity from liability for the decision to initiate

a high-speed police pursuit that lasted less than two

minutes and ended in a fatal automobile accident. The

plaintiff, Angela Borelli, administratrix of the estate of

Brandon Giordano (decedent), appeals1

from the judgment of the trial court granting summary judgment in

favor of the defendants, the town of Seymour (town)

and three officers of the Seymour Police Department

(department), Officer Anthony Renaldi, Officer Michael

Jasmin and Sergeant William King. The plaintiff claims

that the trial court incorrectly concluded that (1) General Statutes § 14-283 (d)2

imposes a discretionary

rather than a ministerial duty on police officers ‘‘to

drive with due regard for the safety of all persons and

property’’ in determining whether to pursue a motorist

who flees when an officer attempts to pull him or her

over, and (2) the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that

any issue of material fact remained regarding whether

the decedent was an identifiable victim subject to imminent harm on the basis of the court’s finding that there

was no evidence in the record supporting that conclusion. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.

It is important at the outset to emphasize what this

case is not about. The issue presented in this appeal is

independently narrowed by the statutory language and

the claims raised by the plaintiff on appeal. First,

although the plaintiff’s complaint reasonably may be

read to have raised the issue of whether governmental

immunity shields officers with respect to the manner

of driving while pursuing a fleeing motorist, her argument on appeal focuses exclusively on whether governmental immunity applies to an officer’s decision to

engage in such a pursuit. Second, § 14-283 pertains

solely to the operation of emergency vehicles while

responding to emergency calls. See General Statutes

§ 14-283 (a) (‘‘As used in this section, ‘emergency vehicle’ means any ambulance or vehicle operated by a

member of an emergency medical service organization

responding to an emergency call, any vehicle used by

a fire department or by any officer of a fire department

while on the way to a fire or while responding to an

emergency call but not while returning from a fire or

emergency call, any state or local police vehicle operated by a police officer or inspector of the Department

of Motor Vehicles answering an emergency call or in

the pursuit of fleeing law violators or any Department

of Correction vehicle operated by a Department of Correction officer while in the course of such officer’s

employment and while responding to an emergency

call.’’) Nothing in the language of § 14-283 suggests that

it pertains to the operation of emergency vehicles under
routine conditions. This decision, accordingly, does not

address the question of whether governmental immunity applies to routine driving of emergency response

vehicles by municipal actors.

The trial court found the following facts to be undisputed. ‘‘On the evening of March 9, 2012, [the decedent]

was a backseat passenger in a Ford Mustang convertible

operated by his friend, [Eric] Ramirez. Another friend,

Dion Major, was a passenger in the front seat. They

were headed to Major’s house in Seymour at the time

of the accident.

‘‘Ramirez exited Route 8 northbound at exit 22 in

Seymour, and proceeded to turn left onto Route 67

toward Oxford. At the time he was operating his vehicle

on Route 67, Ramirez had activated a set of lights that

were affixed to the undercarriage. The lights are commonly referred to as underglow lights, the use of which

. . . are illegal in this state.

‘‘As Ramirez proceeded on Route 67 in Seymour, his

vehicle came to the attention of Renaldi, who was

patrolling the west side of Seymour.3 Renaldi observed

Ramirez’ vehicle had illuminated underglow lights, and

he decided to pull him over. Renaldi was quickly able

to position his vehicle behind Ramirez’ vehicle. Ramirez

accelerated his vehicle in response, and Renaldi sped

up his vehicle in an attempt to lessen the distance

between the two vehicles. Ramirez continued operating

his vehicle at a high rate of speed and illegally passed

a few vehicles being operated in the same direction of

travel on Route 67. At the time Ramirez illegally passed

the vehicles, if not before that time, Renaldi activated

his emergency lights and siren with the intent to stop

Ramirez’ reckless driving. After he activated his lights

and sirens, Renaldi notified dispatch that he was

engaged in pursuit of Ramirez’ Mustang. Renaldi pursued Ramirez’ vehicle into Oxford. After a few miles,

Ramirez turned off Route 67 onto Old State Road in

Oxford. Renaldi lost sight of the vehicle when it turned

onto Old State Road. While operating his vehicle on

Old State Road, Ramirez’ vehicle struck an embankment

off the side of Old State Road and turned over onto its

roof. [The decedent], who was fifteen years old at the

time, was killed in the accident. Ramirez and Major

survived. Renaldi located the overturned vehicle near

a commercial building, approximately two-tenths of one

mile from the intersection of Route 67 and Old State

Road. The entire pursuit lasted less than two minutes.’’

(Footnote added.)

The plaintiff subsequently brought this action against

the town, Renaldi, Jasmin,4 and King. The complaint

alleged that Renaldi and Jasmin were negligent in pursuing Ramirez’ vehicle, that King, who was the shift supervisor, negligently failed to follow department protocol

requiring him to evaluate the initiation and continuation

of the pursuit and negligently failed to order the termi-
nation of the pursuit, and that the town was liable pursuant to General Statutes § 52-557n (a) (1) (A) for the

negligent acts of its agents and/or employees and also

was liable to indemnify the officers pursuant to General

Statutes § 7-465. The defendants moved for summary

judgment as to all counts of the complaint, arguing,

inter alia, that the plaintiff’s claims were barred by

the doctrine of governmental immunity and that no

exception applied.

The trial court granted the defendants’ motion, first

concluding that the officers’ alleged actions ‘‘inherently

involve[d] the exercise of judgment and discretion.’’

The court reasoned that, although both § 14-283 and

the Seymour Police Department Pursuit Policy (town

pursuit policy) require police officers, in determining

whether to initiate a pursuit, to drive with due regard

for the safety of the general public, that mandate necessarily requires officers to exercise their judgment. The

court particularly pointed to the language of the town

pursuit policy, which directs officers to consider case

specific circumstances in determining whether to pursue, such as the nature of the offense, traffic, weather,

road conditions and time of day. See Seymour Police

Department Pursuit Policy § 5.11.11 (A) through (H).

The officers’ actions, therefore, were entitled to governmental immunity.

The trial court next turned to the plaintiff’s contention that an exception to discretionary act immunity

applied because the decedent was a member of a foreseeable class of victims and/or an identifiable individual

subject to imminent harm. The court found that there

were no allegations or evidence presented that the decedent was a member of a foreseeable class of victims

because nothing in the record suggested that the decedent was statutorily compelled or mandated to get into

Ramirez’ vehicle. The court also found that there was

no evidence in the record that Renaldi or Jasmin had

notice of the decedent’s presence in the vehicle. Therefore, the court concluded, the plaintiff had not met her

burden of proving that the decedent was an identifiable

person subject to imminent harm. Because the court

concluded that the officers and the town were entitled

to governmental immunity, it also concluded that the

plaintiff’s claim for indemnification pursuant to § 7-465

failed as a matter of law. This appeal followed.

We begin with the applicable standard of review.

‘‘Practice Book § 17-49 provides that summary judgment shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, affidavits and any other proof submitted show that there is

no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the

moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

In deciding a motion for summary judgment, the trial

court must view the evidence in the light most favorable

to the nonmoving party. . . . The party moving for

summary judgment has the burden of showing the
absence of any genuine issue of material fact and that

the party is, therefore, entitled to judgment as a matter

of law. . . . On appeal, we must determine whether

the legal conclusions reached by the trial court are

legally and logically correct and whether they find support in the facts set out in the memorandum of decision

of the trial court.’’ (Internal quotation marks omitted.)

Reclaimant Corp. v. Deutsch, 332 Conn. 590, 598–99,

211 A.3d 976 (2019).

I

The plaintiff first claims that the trial court incorrectly concluded that § 14-283 (d), as well as the applicable regulations and the town pursuit policy, impose a

discretionary rather than a ministerial duty on police

officers ‘‘to drive with due regard for the safety of all

persons and property’’ when determining whether to

pursue a fleeing motorist.5 The plaintiff claims that § 14-

283 (d), the Uniform Statewide Pursuit Policy, set forth

in §§ 14-283a-1 through 14-283a-4 of the Regulations of

Connecticut State Agencies, and the town pursuit policy

together impose a ministerial duty on police officers to

exercise due regard for the safety of all persons and

property when initiating a pursuit of a fleeing motorist.

Specifically, the plaintiff contends that the applicable

provisions impose a ministerial duty on officers, before

engaging in a pursuit, to first weigh the seriousness of

the precipitating offense and the dangerousness of the

pursuit. Because we conclude that the applicable provisions require officers to exercise judgment in determining whether to pursue a fleeing motorist, we conclude

that the trial court correctly determined that the duty

imposed is discretionary.

The following principles of governmental immunity

are pertinent to our resolution of the plaintiff’s claims.

‘‘The [common-law] doctrines that determine the tort

liability of municipal employees are well established.

. . . Generally, a municipal employee is liable for the

misperformance of ministerial acts, but has a qualified

immunity in the performance of governmental acts.

. . . Governmental acts are performed wholly for the

direct benefit of the public and are supervisory or discretionary in nature. . . . The hallmark of a discretionary act is that it requires the exercise of judgment. . . .

In contrast, [a ministerial act] refers to a duty which is

to be performed in a prescribed manner without the

exercise of judgment or discretion. . . .

‘‘Municipal officials are immunized from liability for

negligence arising out of their discretionary acts in part

because of the danger that a more expansive exposure

to liability would cramp the exercise of official discretion beyond the limits desirable in our society. . . .

Discretionary act immunity reflects a value judgment

that—despite injury to a member of the public—the

broader interest in having government officers and

employees free to exercise judgment and discretion in
their official functions, unhampered by fear of secondguessing and retaliatory lawsuits, outweighs the benefits to be had from imposing liability for that injury.

. . . In contrast, municipal officers are not immune

from liability for negligence arising out of their ministerial acts, defined as acts to be performed in a prescribed

manner without the exercise of judgment or discretion.

. . . This is because society has no analogous interest

in permitting municipal officers to exercise judgment

in the performance of ministerial acts. . . .

‘‘The tort liability of a municipality has been codified

in § 52-557n. Section 52-557n (a) (1) provides that

[e]xcept as otherwise provided by law, a political subdivision of the state shall be liable for damages to person

or property caused by: (A) The negligent acts or omissions of such political subdivision or any employee,

officer or agent thereof acting within the scope of his

employment or official duties . . . . Section 52-557n

(a) (2) (B) extends, however, the same discretionary

act immunity that applies to municipal officials to the

municipalities themselves by providing that they will

not be liable for damages caused by negligent acts or

omissions which require the exercise of judgment or

discretion as an official function of the authority

expressly or impliedly granted by law.’’ (Citations omitted; footnote omitted; internal quotation marks omitted.) Violano v. Fernandez, 280 Conn. 310, 318–20, 907

A.2d 1188 (2006).

‘‘For purposes of determining whether a duty is discretionary or ministerial, this court has recognized that

‘[t]here is a difference between laws that impose general

duties on officials and those that mandate a particular

response to specific conditions.’ Bonington v. Westport,

297 Conn. 297, 308, 999 A.2d 700 (2010). ‘A ministerial

act is one which a person performs in a given state

of facts, in a prescribed manner, in obedience to the

mandate of legal authority, without regard to or the

exercise of his own judgment [or discretion] upon the

propriety of the act being done.’ . . . Blake v. Mason,

82 Conn. 324, 327, 73 A. 782 (1909) . . . . In contrast,

when an official has a general duty to perform a certain

act, but there is no ‘city charter provision, ordinance,

regulation, rule, policy, or any other directive [requiring

the government official to act in a] prescribed manner,’

the duty is deemed discretionary.’’ (Citations omitted;

footnote omitted.) Northrup v. Witkowski, 332 Conn.

158, 169–70, 210 A.3d 29 (2019).

‘‘In accordance with these principles, our courts consistently have held that to demonstrate the existence

of a ministerial duty on the part of a municipality and

its agents, a plaintiff ordinarily must point to some

statute, city charter provision, ordinance, regulation,

rule, policy, or other directive that, by its clear language,

compels a municipal employee to act in a prescribed

manner, without the exercise of judgment or discretion.
. . . Because the construction of any such provision,

including a municipal rule or regulation, presents a

question of law for the court . . . whether the provision creates a ministerial duty gives rise to a legal issue

subject to plenary review on appeal.’’ (Citations omitted; internal quotation marks omitted.) Ventura v. East

Haven, 330 Conn. 613, 631–32, 199 A.3d 1 (2019).

Because this appeal concerns the actions of police

officers and the town police department, we also

observe that ‘‘[i]t is firmly established that the operation

of a police department is a governmental function, and

that acts or omissions in connection therewith ordinarily do not give rise to liability on the part of the

municipality.’’ (Internal quotation marks omitted.) Gordon v. Bridgeport Housing Authority, 208 Conn. 161,

180, 544 A.2d 1185 (1988). ‘‘Indeed, this court has long

recognized that it is not in the public’s interest to [allow]

a jury of laymen with the benefit of 20/20 hindsight to

second-guess the exercise of a [police officer’s] discretionary professional duty. Such discretion is no discretion at all. . . . Thus, as a general rule, [p]olice officers

are protected by discretionary act immunity when they

perform the typical functions of a police officer.’’ (Citations omitted; internal quotation marks omitted.) Ventura v. East Haven, supra, 330 Conn. 630–31.

We next turn to the relevant statutory provisions and

rules. Section 14-283 permits the operators of emergency vehicles to disregard certain traffic rules in light

of the circumstances. The term ‘‘emergency vehicle,’’

as used in § 14-283 (a), includes ‘‘any state or local

police vehicle operated by a police officer . . . in the

pursuit of fleeing law violators . . . .’’ Section 14-283

(b) (1) provides in relevant part that an operator of an

emergency vehicle may ‘‘(B) . . . proceed past any red

light or stop signal or stop sign, but only after slowing

down or stopping to the extent necessary for the safe

operation of such vehicle, (C) exceed the posted speed

limits or other speed limits imposed by or pursuant to

section 14-218a or 14-219 as long as such operator does

not endanger life or property by so doing, and (D) disregard statutes, ordinances or regulations governing

direction of movement or turning in specific directions.’’ The ability to disregard traffic rules is not, however, unlimited. By its terms, § 14-283 applies to state

and local police vehicles only when ‘‘operated by a

police officer or inspector of the Department of Motor

Vehicles answering an emergency call or in the pursuit

of fleeing law violators . . . .’’ General Statutes § 14-

283 (a). Additionally, subsection (d) of § 14-283 provides: ‘‘The provisions of this section shall not relieve

the operator of an emergency vehicle from the duty to

drive with due regard for the safety of all persons and

property.’’ (Emphasis added.) It is this requirement,

that officers drive with due regard for safety, on which

the plaintiff relies in contending that the officers’ duty

to weigh the safety of all persons and property and the
seriousness of the offense prior to initiating a pursuit

was ministerial, rather than discretionary.

The phrase ‘‘due regard,’’ however, rather than mandating a particular response to specific conditions,

imposes a general duty on officers to exercise their

judgment and discretion in a reasonable manner. See

Bonington v. Westport, supra, 297 Conn. 308 (highlighting significance of ‘‘difference between laws that

impose general duties on officials and those that mandate a particular response to specific conditions’’).

Because § 14-283 (d) does not define the phrase ‘‘due

regard,’’ we are guided by General Statutes § 1-1 (a),

which provides: ‘‘In the construction of the statutes,

words and phrases shall be construed according to the

commonly approved usage of the language; and technical words and phrases, and such as have acquired a

peculiar and appropriate meaning in the law, shall be

construed and understood accordingly.’’ Both the legal

and common usage definitions yield the same conclusion—’’due regard’’ directs officers to exercise their

judgment prudently. Black’s Law Dictionary defines the

term ‘‘due’’ as ‘‘[j]ust, proper, regular, and reasonable,’’

and ‘‘regard’’ as ‘‘[a]ttention, care, or consideration

. . . .’’ Black’s Law Dictionary (11th Ed. 2019) pp. 631,

1535. Those definitions evoke the early days of law

school, when all aspiring lawyers first learn of the classic concepts of ‘‘reasonable consideration’’ and ‘‘due

care.’’ ‘‘Due regard’’ is a synonym for those phrases,

which embody the duty to exercise good judgment.

The technical meaning of the phrase is echoed in the

common usage definition. Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines ‘‘with due regard to’’ as ‘‘with the proper

care or concern for.’’ Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary,

available at https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/with due regard to (last visited June 16, 2020). By

its very definition, therefore, the duty to act with due

regard is a discretionary duty.

6

We also look to a related statute, General Statutes

(Supp. 2020) § 14-283a,7 which authorizes the adoption

of ‘‘a uniform, state-wide policy for handling pursuits

by police officers.’’ General Statutes (Supp. 2020) § 14-

283a (b) (1). As we explain in detail herein, the Uniform

Statewide Pursuit Policy adopted pursuant to § 14-283a

contemplates that officers will exercise their judgment

and discretion in giving due regard to the safety of all

persons and property when determining whether to

engage a pursuit.

Our conclusion that § 14-283 (d) imposes a discretionary duty on police officers to act finds further support

in the decisions of this court, which have interpreted

similar statutory language to create a discretionary,

rather than a ministerial, duty to act. For example, in

Coley v. Hartford, 312 Conn. 150, 95 A.3d 480 (2014),

we considered the type of duty created by General

Statutes (Rev. to 2013) § 46b-38b (d) (5) (B), which
directs officers who report to the scene of a report

of domestic violence, upon determining that no cause

exists for arrest, to remain ‘‘at the scene for a reasonable

time until, in the reasonable judgment of the officer,

the likelihood of further imminent violence has been

eliminated.’’8 The plaintiff in Coley argued that, because

the statute required that officers remain at the scene

for a reasonable time and exercise reasonable judgment, they did not have discretion to do otherwise,

and the question of the reasonableness of the officers’

actions should go to the jury. Coley v. Hartford, supra,

163. We rejected that argument on the basis that the

phrases ‘‘reasonable judgment’’ and ‘‘reasonable time’’

inherently require the exercise of judgment and discretion. (Internal quotation marks omitted.) Id., 165–66.

That language, we explained, ‘‘makes the manner of

performance expressly contingent upon the police officer’s discretion . . . .’’ Id., 166. Similarly, in the present

case, the requirement in § 14-283 (d) that, during a pursuit of a fleeing motorist, police officers must drive with

‘‘due regard for the safety of all persons and property,’’

directs officers to exercise their duties with discretion

and judgment.

Our conclusion also finds support in the Uniform

Statewide Pursuit Policy, set forth in §§ 14-283a-1

through 14-283a-4 of the Regulations of Connecticut

State Agencies.9 Those regulations dictate generally that

‘‘[t]he decision to initiate a pursuit shall be based on the

pursuing police officer’s conclusion that the immediate

danger to the police officer and the public created by the

pursuit is less than the immediate or potential danger

to the public should the occupants of such vehicle

remain at large.’’10 Regs., Conn. State Agencies § 14-

283a-4 (a) (1). Section 14-283a-4 also incorporates the

requirement that officers drive with ‘‘due regard for the

safety of persons and property.’’ Id., § 14-283a-4 (b) (4).

In addition to setting forth the general standard, § 14-

283a-4 establishes detailed guidelines for officers to

follow in exercising their discretion. For instance, subsection (a) (2) provides that, in determining whether

to initiate a pursuit, officers must consider road,

weather and environmental conditions; population density and vehicular and pedestrian traffic; whether the

identity of the occupants is known; whether immediate

apprehension is necessary to protect the public or

police officers and apprehension at a later time is feasible; the relative performance capabilities of the pursuit

vehicle and the vehicle being pursued; the seriousness

of the offense; and the presence of other persons in

the police vehicle. Id., § 14-283a-4 (a) (2). All of these

considerations highlight the discretionary nature of the

duty. In each instance, an officer is required to evaluate

the particular circumstances presented, and then weigh

the risks presented by pursuing the vehicle against the

risks presented by not pursuing.

We acknowledge that the Uniform Statewide Pursuit
Policy provides detailed rules governing the conduct

of the pursuit. Regs., Conn. State Agencies §§ 14-283a1 through 14-283a-4; see footnote 9 of this opinion.

Those rules, however, do not constrain the officer’s

discretionary determination of the decision at issue in

this appeal—the determination of whether to pursue.

Many of the rules govern the actual conduct of the

pursuit itself. For example, § 14-283a-4 (b) (2) of the

Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies requires that

a pursuing officer ‘‘activate appropriate warning equipment.’’ Additionally, the pursuing officer must notify

dispatch immediately of the pursuit, including the location, direction and speed of the pursuit, the description

of the pursued vehicle and the initial purpose of the

stop. Regs., Conn. State Agenciess § 14-283a-4 (b) (3).

Even these detailed rules governing the conduct of the

pursuit contemplate that officers will exercise discretion in implementing them. For example, the rule that

ordinarily a pursuit cannot consist of more than three

police vehicles is preceded by the qualifying phrase,

‘‘[u]nless circumstances dictate otherwise . . . .’’ Id.,

§ 14-283a-4 (b) (5).

The Uniform Statewide Pursuit Policy’s rules governing supervisory responsibilities are also quite detailed

but similarly contemplate that supervisors will exercise

judgment and discretion in carrying out their duties. For

example, § 14-283a-4 (c) (1) of the regulations requires

supervisors to ‘‘evaluate the situation and conditions

that caused the pursuit to be initiated, the need to continue the pursuit, and shall monitor incoming information, coordinate and direct activities as needed to

ensure that proper procedures are used.’’ (Emphasis

added.) This language inherently ‘‘makes the manner

of performance expressly contingent upon the [supervisor’s] discretion . . . .’’ Coley v. Hartford, supra, 312

Conn. 166.11

The town pursuit policy further reinforces the discretionary nature of the duty imposed on officers engaged

in pursuit. That policy begins by recognizing the risks

presented by police pursuits as well as the public interest in allowing officers the freedom to pursue persons

who have or are violating the law. See Seymour Police

Department Pursuit Policy § 5.11.11. The remainder of

the town pursuit policy provides guidelines to assist

officers in exercising their judgment in this area that

is fraught with risk on either side. Considering the gravity of the concerns at issue, the policy states: ‘‘Police

officers shall make every reasonable effort to apprehend a fleeing violator, but pursuit should not be carried

to such an extent as to appreciably endanger the lives

of innocent users of our streets and highways, or the

officer himself.

‘‘As a general rule, pursuit is not recommended or

favored when the potential danger to the officer and

the general public outweighs the potential advantage
of apprehending a fleeing vehicle by such means. Stated

simply, pursuit is clearly inappropriate when the pursuit

itself endangers life more than the escape of the person

pursued. Delay may also be the wiser choice when the

person is known and he or she poses no immediate

threat to the community.’’ Id.

In light of the risks presented by a pursuit, the town

pursuit policy directs officers to weigh ‘‘many factors’’

in determining whether to initiate a pursuit. Id. In particular, some of the questions that officers ‘‘must ask themselves when deciding whether or not to pursue’’ include

the nature of the offense, the time of day, weather and

road conditions, geographical location (proximity to a

school or hospital), population density, the officer’s

familiarity with the area, and the police cruiser’s capability and reliability. Id., § 5.11.11 (A) through (H). It is

significant that the policy characterizes these considerations as questions that officers must ‘‘ask themselves’’

and also indicates that, under some circumstances,

delay may be the ‘‘wiser choice.’’ That language makes

very clear that the officers are required to exercise their

judgment and discretion in evaluating the particular

circumstances when determining whether to engage in

a pursuit.

The town pursuit policy also directs officers to exercise their discretion in determining whether to continue

a pursuit, providing that, once a pursuit has been initiated, ‘‘a continuing reconsideration of the above factors

should be made by the officer. Once made, the decision

to pursue is not irrevocable, and it is the intelligent

officer who knows when to discontinue the chase. The

experience and common sense of each officer and his

knowledge of the area should also guide him in his

decision.’’ Id., § 5.11.11. The policy further explains that

a continuing pursuit is ‘‘authorized when the pursuing

officer has reasonable grounds to believe that an individual clearly exhibits an intent to avoid arrest by using

his motor vehicle to flee. It is important that an officer

weigh the seriousness of the offense which has been

committed against the hazards present to the health

and welfare of citizens that might be affected by the

chase. If the pursuit is initiated, a continuous balancing

of the seriousness versus public safety is mandatory.’’

Id., § 5.11.12 (B).

This language clearly directs a municipal actor to

exercise judgment and discretion. The town pursuit

policy instructs officers to use common sense and rely

on their experience, to be guided by reasonable grounds

to determine if the individual intends to avoid arrest,

to ‘‘weigh’’ the seriousness of the offense against the

risks presented by the chase, to continually ‘‘balance’’

those concerns, and to act as an ‘‘intelligent officer

. . . .’’ Id., §§ 5.11.11 and 5.11.12 (B). Just as with the

statutory and policy language at issue in Coley v. Hartford, supra, 312 Conn. 166, all of these policy provisions
make the manner of performance contingent upon the

police officer’s discretion. We therefore conclude that

§ 14-283, read together with the Uniform Statewide Pursuit Policy, set forth in §§ 14-283a-1 through 14-283a-4

of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, and

the town’s pursuit policy, imposes a discretionary

rather than a ministerial duty upon police officers ‘‘to

drive with due regard for the safety of all persons and

property’’ when deciding whether to initiate the pursuit

of a fleeing motorist.

We find unpersuasive the plaintiff’s claim that § 14-

283, the Uniform Statewide Pursuit Policy, set forth in

§§ 14-283a-1 through 14-283a-4 of the Regulations of

Connecticut State Agencies, and the town pursuit policy

create a ministerial duty to act, while affording officers

discretion as to how to act. Specifically, the plaintiff

suggests that, because the statutory language mandates

that police officers drive with due regard for safety,

there is no discretion to drive without such regard. The

plaintiff’s claim essentially is that the duty imposed on

police officers to drive with due regard for safety is not

an optional one. Therefore, the plaintiff contends, the

duty is a ministerial one. The plaintiff’s argument misconstrues the nature of the distinction we have drawn

between discretionary and ministerial duties. We have

explained that ‘‘mandatory language does not necessarily render a duty ministerial as opposed to discretionary

. . . .’’ Coley v. Hartford, supra, 312 Conn. 169. The

core distinction between the two types of duty lies not

in whether the duty is mandatory, but in whether the

performance of that duty will inherently require the

municipal actor to exercise judgment. As we explained,

§ 14-283 imposes a duty on officers to exercise their

judgment in determining whether to initiate, how to

conduct, and whether to continue the pursuit of a fleeing motorist. The mere fact that officers are required

to exercise good judgment in making those decisions

does not change the discretionary nature of their duties.

We are similarly unpersuaded by the plaintiff’s reliance on dictum from this court’s decision in Tetro v.

Stratford, 189 Conn. 601, 458 A.2d 5 (1983), which, like

the present case, arose from a police pursuit, for the

proposition that § 14-283 imposes a ministerial duty on

officers to drive with due regard for safety when deciding whether to initiate a pursuit. For two reasons, Tetro

is inapplicable to the present case.

First, Tetro presented a different question than the

one at issue in this appeal. The municipal defendants

in Tetro did not assert governmental immunity and did

not even directly challenge on appeal the jury’s finding

that they were negligent. Id., 604. Tetro concerned

issues of proximate cause, sufficiency of the evidence

as to proximate cause, and the applicability of § 14-283

to accidents that do not directly involve an emergency

vehicle. Id. The defendants argued before this court
that there was insufficient evidence to establish a causal

link between their acts or omissions and the plaintiff’s

injuries because the pursuing police cruiser was not

involved in the accident that caused those injuries. Id.

Instead, the plaintiff was injured when the car of the

fleeing motorist collided with the plaintiff’s vehicle. Id.,

603. The defendants argued that, because the statutory

mandate was that officers drive the emergency vehicle

with ‘‘due regard for the safety of all persons and property,’’ liability pursuant to § 14-283 was limited to injuries resulting from accidents that involved the

emergency vehicle itself. Id., 609. This court rejected

that argument, explaining, ‘‘[w]e see no reason to read

the words ‘safety of all persons and property’ so restrictively. . . . We . . . conclude that § 14-283 provides

no special zone of limited liability once the defendants’

negligence has been established.’’ (Citations omitted;

footnote omitted.) Id., 609–10. We merely rejected the

defendants’ suggested, narrow interpretation of the

words ‘‘due regard for the safety of all persons and

property’’ in § 14-283. Id.

We also rejected the defendants’ claim that ‘‘public

policy requires a limitation of the liability of pursuing

police vehicles to accidents involving the police car

itself.’’ Id., 610. That claim, we reasoned, assumed that

the jury’s verdict in favor of the plaintiff was solely

predicated on the theory that the defendants had negligently failed to abandon or terminate the pursuit. Id.

Because the jury returned a general verdict, however,

we had to presume that it also had found for the plaintiff

on his claim that the defendants were negligent in the

manner of pursuit, as to which the defendants had not

challenged the sufficiency of the evidence on appeal.

Id. Therefore, we concluded that the verdict must stand,

regardless of whether the defendants would prevail on

their public policy argument. Id., 610–11.

In closing, we observed in dictum that, ‘‘[a]s a general

proposition, our common law and our statutes do not

confer upon police officers, whose conduct is negligent,

blanket immunity from liability to an innocent

bystander by virtue of their engagement in the pursuit of

persons whom they believe to have engaged in criminal

behavior.’’ (Emphasis added.) Id., 611. Our rejection of

the defendants’ claim that they were not liable for an

accident that did not directly involve the emergency

vehicle has no bearing on the question of whether the

duty imposed on officers by § 14-283 is discretionary

or ministerial. That question was simply not before us

in Tetro.

Second, Tetro was decided in 1983—thirty-seven

years ago, and prior to the codification of the common

law in § 52-557n. We have since interpreted and applied

§ 52-557n in dozens of cases.12 See, e.g., Northrup v.

Witkowski, supra, 332 Conn. 166–77; Considine v.

Waterbury, 279 Conn. 830, 836–44, 905 A.2d 70 (2006);
Spears v. Garcia, 263 Conn. 22, 29–34, 818 A.2d 37

(2003). In the more recent decisions interpreting § 52-

557n, we have recognized that our interpretation of the

distinction between ministerial and discretionary duties

is one that has evolved over time. See, e.g., Northrup v.

Witkowski, supra, 166 (overruling Spitzer v. Waterbury,

113 Conn. 84, 154 A. 157 (1931), in light of ‘‘more modern

case law and statutes governing the distinction between

ministerial and discretionary duties’’). In summary, we

do not find Tetro to be either relevant or helpful. It

addressed a different question than that presented in

this case, was decided almost forty years ago, prior to

the evolution of our law, and the language that the

plaintiff points to is dictum.

II

We next turn to the plaintiff’s claim that the trial

court incorrectly concluded that, because the plaintiff

had failed to demonstrate that the decedent was either

a member of a foreseeable class of identifiable victims

or an identifiable individual, the identifiable personimminent harm exception to governmental immunity

did not apply in the present case. Implicitly arguing that

the decedent was a member of a foreseeable class of

identifiable victims, the plaintiff claims that the language of § 14-283 (d), which requires officers to ‘‘drive

with due regard for the safety of all persons and property’’; (emphasis added); made the decedent an identifiable person. That is, under the plain language of the

statute, the plaintiff contends, all persons involved in

the pursuit are identifiable. To the extent that the plaintiff’s argument, relying on the language of § 14-283 (d),

may be construed to claim that the decedent was a

member of a foreseeable class of identifiable victims,13

the defendants respond that, because the decedent was

not legally compelled to be in the vehicle, he did not

belong to any such class.

As to the decedent’s status as an identifiable individual, the plaintiff challenges the trial court’s finding that

no evidence had been presented to demonstrate that

Renaldi was aware that passengers were in the vehicle.

Even if the trial court’s finding was correct, the plaintiff

contends, pursuant to this court’s decision in Sestito v.

Groton, 178 Conn. 520, 423 A.2d 165 (1979), evidence

that Renaldi had specific knowledge of the presence of

passengers in the vehicle was not necessary in order

for the court to conclude that the decedent was an

identifiable individual. The defendants respond that this

court’s decision in Sestito has been limited to its facts.

They also dispute the plaintiff’s challenge to the trial

court’s factual finding that there was no evidence in

the record to support the conclusion that the decedent

was an identifiable individual. We conclude that the

trial court correctly determined that the plaintiff failed

to demonstrate that the decedent was either a member

of a class of foreseeable victims or an identifiable indi-
vidual.

This court has recognized three exceptions to governmental immunity, each of which, when proven, demonstrates that, ‘‘despite the discretionary nature of the

officer’s acts or omissions, the officer’s duty to act was

clear and unequivocal so as to warrant imposing liability

on the municipality.’’ Edgerton v. Clinton, 311 Conn.

217, 230 n.13, 86 A.3d 437 (2014). In the present case,

only the identifiable victim-imminent harm exception to

governmental immunity is at issue.14 We have explained

that this exception, which ‘‘has received very limited

recognition in this state’’; (internal quotation marks

omitted) Grady v. Somers, 294 Conn. 324, 350, 984 A.2d

684 (2009); ‘‘has three requirements: (1) an imminent

harm; (2) an identifiable victim; and (3) a public official

to whom it is apparent that his or her conduct is likely

to subject that victim to that harm. . . . All three must

be proven in order for the exception to apply.’’ (Citation

omitted; internal quotation marks omitted.) Edgerton

v. Clinton, supra, 230–31. We have stated that this court

has ‘‘construed this exception to apply not only to identifiable individuals but also to narrowly defined identified classes of foreseeable victims.’’ (Internal quotation

marks omitted.) Durrant v. Board of Education, 284

Conn. 91, 100, 931 A.2d 859 (2007).

The trial court rested its conclusion that the exception did not apply on the second of the three requirements, determining that there was no evidence in the

record that the decedent was either a member of a

foreseeable class or an identifiable individual. In

arguing that the decedent was an identifiable victim,

the plaintiff challenges both of those determinations by

the trial court. We first consider the plaintiff’s claim that

the decedent was a member of a foreseeable class—a

claim that cannot be squared with our case law. We

repeatedly have emphasized ‘‘the narrowness of the

class of persons who may be identified as foreseeable

victims . . . [observing that] [t]he only identifiable

class of foreseeable victims that we have recognized

for these purposes is that of schoolchildren attending

public schools during school hours because: they were

intended to be the beneficiaries of particular duties of

care imposed by law on school officials; they were

legally required to attend school rather than being there

voluntarily; their parents were thus statutorily required

to relinquish their custody to those officials during

those hours; and, as a matter of policy, they traditionally

require special consideration in the face of dangerous

conditions.’’ (Citation omitted; internal quotation marks

omitted.) Grady v. Somers, supra, 294 Conn. 351–52.

As the trial court correctly observed in its memorandum

of decision, the record in the present case revealed that

the decedent was not legally compelled to get into the

Mustang and was a voluntary passenger in the vehicle.

The trial court correctly concluded that the plaintiff

failed to demonstrate that the decedent was a member
of a foreseeable class of identifiable victims.

The plaintiff’s suggestion to the contrary—namely,

that, because § 14-283 (d) requires officers to ‘‘drive

with due regard for the safety of all persons and property’’; (emphasis added); the decedent belonged to a

foreseeable class of identifiable persons—would be

inconsistent with both this court’s prior interpretations

of the scope of the identifiable person-imminent harm

exception and the public policy principles underlying

governmental immunity. As we have explained, ‘‘[o]ur

decisions underscore . . . that whether the plaintiff

was compelled to be at the location where the injury

occurred remains a paramount consideration in

determining whether the plaintiff was . . . [a] member

of a foreseeable class of victims.’’ (Internal quotation

marks omitted.) Strycharz v. Cady, 323 Conn. 548, 575–

76, 148 A.3d 1011 (2016). We have thus far found this

condition to be satisfied only in the case of schoolchildren attending a public school during school hours.

As a matter of public policy, moreover, the plaintiff’s

argument must be rejected. There is no question that

the officers owed a duty to drive with due regard for

the safety of all persons and property. The mere fact

that the officers owed a duty to a group of persons

that included the decedent, however, did not make the

decedent a member of a foreseeable class of victims.

As we explained in part I of this opinion, because the

duty imposed by § 14-283 (d) requires the exercise of

judgment and discretion, governmental immunity

applies. Under the plaintiff’s theory, however, every

person who is injured as a result of a police pursuit is

a member of a foreseeable class of identifiable victims.

If we were to agree with the plaintiff, the identifiable

victim-imminent harm exception would apply to every

police pursuit, and the exception would swallow the

rule. That conclusion would run contrary to the public

policy principles underlying the grant of governmental

immunity to the discretionary acts of municipal officers.

As we explained in part I of this opinion, discretionary

act immunity ‘‘reflects a value judgment that—despite

injury to a member of the public—the broader interest

in having government officers and employees free to

exercise judgment and discretion in their official functions, unhampered by fear of second-guessing and retaliatory lawsuits, outweighs the benefits to be had from

imposing liability for that injury.’’ (Internal quotation

marks omitted.) Violano v. Fernandes, supra, 280 Conn.

319. If we were to accede to the plaintiff’s argument,

police officers would not have the discretion to determine whether, in their judgment, after considering the

particular circumstances presented, a pursuit is warranted.

We next address the plaintiff’s claim that the decedent was an identifiable individual. We previously have

stated that ‘‘[a]n individual may be ‘identifiable’ for pur-
poses of the exception to qualified governmental immunity if the harm occurs within a limited temporal and

geographical zone, involving a temporary condition.

Purzycki v. Fairfield, [244 Conn. 101, 110, 708 A.2d 937

(1998), overruled in part on other grounds by Haynes

v. Middletown, 314 Conn. 303, 323, 101 A.3d 249 (2014)];

see Tryon v. North Branford, 58 Conn. App. 702, 710,

755 A.2d 317 (2000) (because harm occurred within

framework limited in duration, place and condition,

plaintiff was ‘identifiable person’ within meaning of

exception). For the harm to be deemed imminent, the

potential for harm must be sufficiently immediate. In

fact, the criteria of identifiable person and imminent

harm must be evaluated with reference to each other.

An allegedly identifiable person must be identifiable as

a potential victim of a specific imminent harm. Likewise, the alleged imminent harm must be imminent in

terms of its impact on a specific identifiable person.’’

Cotto v. Board of Education, 294 Conn. 265, 275–76,

984 A.2d 58 (2009).

The plaintiff’s argument that the decedent was an

identifiable individual is unavailing. The plaintiff’s argument rests on her theory that Renaldi could or should

have seen the decedent in the Mustang. Specifically,

the plaintiff claims that Renaldi should have been aware

of the decedent’s presence in the Mustang because

Renaldi performed a U-turn after he noticed the undercarriage lights, which positioned him behind the Mustang after he made the turn. That maneuver required

him to drive past the Mustang, which was a convertible

with the top down, so he likely would have been able

to see the passengers in the vehicle, particularly since

the boys were wearing ‘‘brightly striped, pink zebra

hats.’’ The plaintiff also argues that, because driving

around town in this manner was a Friday night tradition

for the boys, Renaldi ‘‘would have recognized [them]

immediately.’’

In making this argument, the plaintiff relies heavily

on the sole decision in which this court has concluded

that a plaintiff had demonstrated that the person who

was harmed was an identifiable individual—Sestito v.

Groton, supra, 178 Conn. 520. In Sestito, an on duty

municipal police officer watched an ongoing barroom

brawl involving at least seven men taking place in a

bar’s parking lot. Id., 522–23. Despite the officer’s belief

that ‘‘one member of the group might [have been] armed

and a robbery suspect,’’ and, despite his own admission

that ‘‘he could have driven unimpeded into the lot,’’ he

did not intervene until after the decedent was shot

and killed. Id., 523. As we have previously observed,

however, ‘‘we decided Sestito before we adopted the

three-pronged imminent harm test . . . .’’ Edgerton v.

Clinton, supra, 311 Conn. 240. Moreover, this court has

repeatedly stated that Sestito has been confined to its

facts. See St. Pierre v. Plainfield, 326 Conn. 420, 436

n.15, 165 A.3d 148 (2017); Edgerton v. Clinton, supra,
240; Grady v. Somers, supra, 294 Conn. 353–54.

Even if we assume without deciding that the plaintiff’s representation of the record is correct,15 the plaintiff’s argument that the decedent was an identifiable

individual implicates the same public policy principle

as her argument that he was a member of a foreseeable

class of victims. That is, because in the context of a

police pursuit, there will always be at least one person

whose presence the police could or should be aware

of—the driver of the pursued vehicle—if we agreed

with the plaintiff, the exception would swallow the rule.

Accordingly, because the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that the decedent was an identifiable individual,

and, because the decedent was not a member of a foreseeable class of identifiable victims, we conclude that

the trial court correctly determined that the plaintiff

had failed to prove that the identifiable person-imminent harm exception to discretionary act immunity

applied.

The judgment is affirmed.

In this opinion ROBINSON, C. J., and PALMER,

McDONALD, D’AURIA, and MULLINS, Js., concurred.

* The listing of justices reflects their seniority status on this court as of

the date of oral argument.

** June 24, 2020, the date that this decision was released as a slip opinion,

is the operative date for all substantive and procedural purposes.

1 The plaintiff appealed from the judgment of the trial court to the Appellate

Court, and we transferred the appeal to this court pursuant to General

Statutes § 51-199 (c) and Practice Book § 65-1.

2 Although § 14-283 has been amended by the legislature since the events

underlying the present case; see, e.g., Public Acts 2014, No. 14-221, § 1; these

amendments have no bearing on the merits of this appeal. In the interest

of simplicity, we refer to the current revision of the statute.

3 Renaldi testified at his deposition that, because he was traveling in the

opposite direction at the time that he observed the Mustang’s underglow

lights, he made a U-turn in order to position himself behind the Mustang.

Major recalled the start of the pursuit differently, and testified at his deposition that Renaldi’s car was positioned to the side of the road, ‘‘hiding’’ in

between a Peak Fitness building and a gate. According to Major, the police

cruiser pulled out behind the Mustang after they passed it, and the driver

did not make a U-turn. We consider it immaterial whether Renaldi made a

U-turn or pulled out from the side of the road.

4 There was conflicting evidence as to whether Jasmin had joined the

pursuit of the Mustang. In a statement provided to the police and attached as

an exhibit to the plaintiff’s objection to the defendants’ motion for summary

judgment, a witness stated that he saw two police cruisers pursuing the

Mustang. Jasmin swore in an affidavit attached as an exhibit to the defendants’ motion for summary judgment, however, that he was not engaged in

the pursuit that evening and was not even aware at the time that a pursuit

was taking place. The trial court acknowledged that factual dispute and

observed that it was undisputed that Jasmin responded to the scene of the

accident. Because the trial court concluded that there were no remaining

issues of material fact as to governmental immunity, we infer that the court

concluded that the factual dispute regarding Jasmin’s participation in the

pursuit was not material. We agree. Even if we assume without deciding

that Jasmin was involved in the pursuit, that fact is immaterial to the question

of whether the trial court correctly concluded that the doctrine of governmental immunity applied.

5 We emphasize that the question presented is limited both by the record

presented and by the arguments that the plaintiff has presented on appeal.

Because the facts of this case involve a police officer’s response to observed

illegal conduct, this appeal does not concern routine conduct during dayto-day operations but, rather, an officer’s response to a violation of the law.
Additionally, the plaintiff’s argument on appeal narrows the issue presented.

Specifically, in her brief, the plaintiff states: ‘‘[T]he question before this

court is limited to determining whether the legislature intended to create

a ministerial obligation [for] officers to first account for the seriousness of

the offense and the dangerousness of the pursuit before engaging in it when

the legislature passed § 14-283.’’ (Emphasis added.) She states that this

requirement, ‘‘that an officer, at the start of a pursuit, take account of the

safety of others, and balance that against the seriousness of the offense,’’

is one that is mandatory and not subject to the officer’s discretion. If this

court agrees with the plaintiff, she explains, ‘‘it falls to the jury to determine

if the pursuing officers failed to take those factors into account at all when

they first engaged in an extremely dangerous, nighttime pursuit [for] a

minor infraction.’’ (Emphasis added.) Accordingly, this appeal is confined

to an officer’s decision to initiate a pursuit and does not concern the much

broader question of whether and under what circumstances the duty to

drive with due regard for the safety of others is discretionary or ministerial.

See Bieluch v. Bieluch, 199 Conn. 550, 555, 509 A.2d 8 (1986) (declining to

address issue not raised in party’s brief).

In light of the narrow question presented in this appeal, we disagree with

the dissent’s assessment of the scope and effect of today’s decision. The

dissent implicitly acknowledges the narrow reach of our decision when it

provides an assessment of what it views as the likely odds that a plaintiff

will ‘‘succeed in a negligence lawsuit brought against a municipality or

municipal employee for that employee’s negligence.’’ Text accompanying

footnote 4 of the dissenting opinion. In a footnote, the dissent qualifies

that statement: ‘‘This assessment is not meant to include lawsuits seeking

recovery for personal injury or property damage caused by the negligent

operation of a motor vehicle under routine conditions.’’ Footnote 4 of the

dissenting opinion.

6 Because the requirement ‘‘to drive with due regard for the safety of all

persons and property’’ imposes a duty to exercise discretion, § 14-283 (d)

falls squarely within the general rule of § 52-557n (a) (2) that municipalities

‘‘shall not be liable for damages to person or property caused by . . . negligent acts or omissions which require the exercise of judgment or discretion

as an official function of the authority expressly or impliedly granted by law.’’

Nothing in the language of § 14-283, which exclusively governs response to

emergencies, supports the position that the legislature intended to impose

anything other than a discretionary duty, or that it intended to delineate an

exception to § 52-557n.

7 General Statutes (Supp. 2020) § 14-283a (b) (1) provides: ‘‘The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection, in conjunction with

the Chief State’s Attorney, the Police Officer Standards and Training Council,

the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association and the Connecticut Coalition

of Police and Correctional Officers, shall adopt, in accordance with the

provisions of chapter 54, a uniform, state-wide policy for handling pursuits

by police officers. Such policy shall specify: (A) The conditions under which

a police officer may engage in a pursuit and discontinue a pursuit, (B)

alternative measures to be employed by any such police officer in order to

apprehend any occupant of the fleeing motor vehicle or to impede the

movement of such motor vehicle, (C) the coordination and responsibility,

including control over the pursuit, of supervisory personnel and the police

officer engaged in such pursuit, (D) in the case of a pursuit that may proceed

and continue into another municipality, (i) the requirement to notify and

the procedures to be used to notify the police department in such other

municipality or, if there is no organized police department in such other

municipality, the officers responsible for law enforcement in such other

municipality, that there is a pursuit in progress, and (ii) the coordination

and responsibility of supervisory personnel in each such municipality and

the police officer engaged in such pursuit, (E) the type and amount of

training in pursuits, that each police officer shall undergo, which may include

training in vehicle simulators, if vehicle simulator training is determined to

be necessary, and (F) that a police officer immediately notify supervisory

personnel or the officer in charge after the police officer begins a pursuit.

The chief of police or Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public

Protection, as the case may be, shall inform each officer within such chief’s

or said commissioner’s department and each officer responsible for law

enforcement in a municipality in which there is no such department of the

existence of the policy of pursuit to be employed by any such officer and

shall take whatever measures that are necessary to assure that each such

officer understands the pursuit policy established.’’
All references in this opinion to § 14-283a are to the version of that statute

set forth in the 2020 Supplement to the General Statutes.

8 The applicable Hartford Police Department policy and procedure similarly required officers to remain at the scene ‘‘for a reasonable time until,

in the reasonable judgment of the officer, the likelihood of further imminent

violence has been eliminated.’’ Coley v. Hartford, supra, 312 Conn. 153 n.2.

9 Section 14-283a-4 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies provides in relevant part: ‘‘(a) Initiation of Pursuit.

‘‘(1) The decision to initiate a pursuit shall be based on the pursuing

police officer’s conclusion that the immediate danger to the police officer

and the public created by the pursuit is less than the immediate or potential

danger to the public should the occupants of such vehicle remain at large.

‘‘(2) In deciding whether to initiate a pursuit, the police officer shall take

the following factors into consideration:

‘‘(A) Road, weather and environmental conditions;

‘‘(B) Population density and vehicular and pedestrian traffic;

‘‘(C) Whether the identity of the occupants is known and immediate

apprehension is not necessary to protect the public or police officers and

apprehension at a later time is feasible;

‘‘(D) The relative performance capabilities of the pursuit vehicle and the

vehicle being pursued;

‘‘(E) The seriousness of the offense; and

‘‘(F) The presence of other persons in the police vehicle.

‘‘(b) Pursuit Operations.

‘‘(1) All authorized emergency vehicle operations shall be conducted in

strict conformity with Sections 14-283a-1 to 14-283a-4, inclusive, of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, and section 14-283a of the Connecticut

General Statutes.

‘‘(2) Upon engaging in or entering into a pursuit, the pursuing vehicle

shall activate appropriate warning equipment. An audible warning device

shall be used during all such pursuits.

‘‘(3) Upon engaging in a pursuit, the police officer shall immediately notify

communications of the location, direction and speed of the pursuit, the

description of the pursued vehicle and the initial purpose of the stop. The

police officers shall keep communications updated on the pursuit. Communications personnel shall immediately notify any available supervisor of the

agency or agencies involved in such pursuit, clear the radio channel of nonemergency traffic, and relay necessary information to other police officers

of the involved police agency or agencies, and adjacent police agencies in

whose direction the pursuit is proceeding.

‘‘(4) When engaged in a pursuit, police officers shall drive with due regard

for the safety of persons and property.

‘‘(5) Unless circumstances dictate otherwise, a pursuit shall consist of no

more than three police vehicles, one of which shall be designated as the

primary unit. No other personnel shall join the pursuit unless instructed to

participate by a supervisor.

‘‘(6) The primary unit involved in the pursuit shall become secondary

when the fleeing vehicle comes under police air surveillance or when another

unit has been assigned primary responsibility.

‘‘(c) Supervisory Responsibilities.

‘‘(1) When made aware of a pursuit, the appropriate supervisor shall

evaluate the situation and conditions that caused the pursuit to be initiated,

the need to continue the pursuit, and shall monitor incoming information,

coordinate and direct activities as needed to ensure that proper procedures

are used. Such supervisor shall also have the authority to terminate the

pursuit. When the agency supervisor communicates a termination directive,

all agency vehicles shall disengage warning devices and cease the pursuit.

‘‘(2) Where possible, a supervisory police officer shall respond to the

location where a vehicle has been stopped following a pursuit.

‘‘(d) Pursuit Tactics.

‘‘(1) Police officers not engaged in the pursuit as the primary or secondary

unit shall not normally follow the pursuit on parallel streets unless authorized

by a supervisor or when it is possible to conduct such an operation without

unreasonable hazard to other vehicular or pedestrian traffic.

‘‘(2) When feasible, available patrol units having the most prominent

markings and emergency lights shall be used to pursue, particularly as the

primary unit. When a pursuit is initiated by other than a marked patrol unit,

such unit shall become the secondary unit when a marked unit becomes

available as the primary unit, and such unit shall disengage from the pursuit

when another marked unit becomes available as the secondary unit.
* * *

‘‘(e) Termination of the Pursuit.

‘‘(1) The police officer serving as the primary unit engaged in the pursuit

shall continually re-evaluate and assess the pursuit situation, including all

of the initiating factors, and terminate the pursuit whenever he or she

reasonably believes that the risks associated with continued pursuit are

greater than the public safety benefit of making an immediate apprehension.

‘‘(2) The pursuit may be terminated by the primary unit at any time.

‘‘(3) A supervisor may order the termination of a pursuit at any time and

shall order the termination of a pursuit when the potential danger to the

public outweighs the need for immediate apprehension. Such decision shall

be based on information known to the supervisor at the time of the pursuit.

‘‘(4) A pursuit may be terminated if the identity of the occupants has been

determined, immediate apprehension is not necessary to protect the public

or police officers, and apprehension at a later time is feasible.

‘‘(5) A pursuit may be terminated when the police officers are prevented

from communicating with their supervisors, communications or other police

officers. . . .’’ (Emphasis in original.)

10 We reiterate that this appeal is limited to whether the decision to engage

in a pursuit of a fleeing motorist is a ministerial or discretionary act, and

does not address the manner of driving or the conduct of the pursuit itself.

See footnote 5 of this opinion. The distinction between the two—the decision

whether to initiate a pursuit and the manner in which that pursuit is conducted —is illustrated in the Uniform Statewide Pursuit Policy, which treats

the initiation of a pursuit under a separate subsection. See footnote 9 of

this opinion. As we explain, that subsection details the various factors that

officers must consider in determining whether to initiate a pursuit, including

road, weather and environmental conditions. We discuss those factors in

detail in the body text accompanying this footnote.

The manner of the pursuit is governed by subsections (b) and (d) of § 14-

283a-4 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies. Those subsections

set forth, respectively, the rules governing pursuit operations and pursuit

tactics. See footnote 9 of this opinion. A few examples illustrate the distinction further. The pursuing vehicle must ‘‘activate appropriate warning equipment’’ and use ‘‘[a]n audible warning device’’ during the pursuit. Regs., Conn.

State Agencies § 14-283a-4 (b) (2). The pursuit must not consist of more

than three vehicles. Id., § 14-283a-4 (b) (5). Pursuing officers ‘‘shall not

normally follow the pursuit on parallel streets unless authorized by a supervisor or when it is possible to conduct such an operation without unreasonable

hazard to other vehicular or pedestrian traffic.’’ Id., § 14-283a-4 (d) (1). When

feasible, vehicles with the most prominent markings should be used in the

pursuit. Id., § 14-283a-4 (d) (2).

11 We observe that, pursuant to General Statutes § 4-170 of the Uniform

Administrative Procedure Act, the Uniform Statewide Pursuit Policy, as set

forth in §§ 14-283a-1 through 14-283a-4 of the Regulations of Connecticut

State Agencies, is subject to the review of the standing legislative regulation

review committee, comprised of members of the General Assembly, which

has the authority to reject proposed regulations. That approval process

ensures that the regulations are consistent with legislative intent.

12 To the extent that the dissent contends that our statutory interpretations

of § 52-557n have strayed from the intent of the legislature when it codified

the common law through § 52-557n in 1986, we disagree. If this court’s

interpretation of § 52-557n were contrary to the intent of the legislature,

surely, at some point in the almost forty years that have passed since the

passage of § 52-557n, the legislature would have weighed in on the issue.

As we have explained, ‘‘[t]ime and again, we have characterized the failure

of the legislature to take corrective action as manifesting the legislature’s

acquiescence in our construction of a statute. . . . Once an appropriate

interval to permit legislative reconsideration has passed without corrective

legislative action, the inference of legislative acquiescence places a significant jurisprudential limitation on our own authority to reconsider the merits

of our earlier decision.’’ (Internal quotation marks omitted.) Spiotti v. Wolcott, 326 Conn. 190, 202, 163 A.3d 46 (2017).

13 The plaintiff argues that, because she has never claimed that the decedent was a member of a foreseeable class of identifiable victims, the defendants’ arguments that he was not a member of a foreseeable class are

irrelevant. Our review of the record, however, reveals that the plaintiff did

make this argument before the trial court, which concluded that the decedent

was not a member of a foreseeable class of identifiable victims. Moreover, as

we explain in this opinion, by contending that the decedent was identifiable
because he was included in the statutory language of ‘‘all persons’’ in § 14-

283 (d), the plaintiff implicitly argues that the decedent was a member of

a foreseeable class of identifiable victims.

14 The other two exceptions are: ‘‘where a statute specifically provides

for a cause of action against a municipality or municipal official for failure

to enforce certain laws; and . . . where the alleged acts involve malice,

wantonness or intent to injure, rather than negligence.’’ (Internal quotation

marks omitted.) Grady v. Somers, 294 Conn. 324, 338 n.14, 984 A.2d 684

(2009).

15 In rejecting the plaintiff’s claim that the decedent was an identifiable

individual, the trial court addressed the argument that the plaintiff made in

support of that proposition, namely, that the decedent was an identifiable

individual because Renaldi should have recognized the Mustang from a

previous incident in which he had pulled that vehicle over, and that Renaldi

had the opportunity to observe that there were passengers in the vehicle

on the night in question. The trial court determined that there was no

evidence in the record that Renaldi knew that the decedent was a passenger

in the Mustang.

Although we assume for purposes of argument that the plaintiff’s representation of the record is correct, there are weaknesses in her argument. In

claiming that there was evidence that Renaldi should have been aware that

there were passengers in the vehicle, she points to the fact that the boys

were in a Mustang convertible with its top down in the winter, that the boys

wore brightly striped, pink zebra hats, and that Renaldi had stopped the

Mustang on a prior occasion when the boys were in that same vehicle,

wearing the hats. At his deposition, however, Renaldi testified that, when

he initially noticed the Mustang, he did not even notice that it was a convertible and did not notice how many persons were inside the vehicle. Renaldi’s

attention initially was drawn to the undercarriage lights, which were like

disco lights, shining to the back and to the front. He then focused on trying

to obtain the license plate number, because it was his preferred practice

to obtain the license plate number prior to stopping a vehicle. As for his

prior contact with the Mustang, Renaldi testified at his deposition that he

did not recall that prior contact until two weeks later, when another officer

ran the license plate number and pointed out the prior contact to Renaldi.

Only then did Renaldi recall that he had previously stopped the Mustang

and that the boys had been driving the convertible with the top down in

winter and were wearing ‘‘goofy hats.’’ Moreover, the only evidence provided

regarding the zebra hats on the night in question was that Major wore one

and that Ramirez ‘‘might’’ have had one on. Not only was there no evidence

that the decedent was wearing a zebra hat, but Major testified at his deposition that the decedent was asleep in the back seat of the Mustang.