Plaintiff commenced the present wrongful death action against Vincent Kerr in his official and individual capacities on 4 February 1994 seeking compensatory and punitive damages. Defendant filed a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. Judge Orlando F. Hudson heard this motion in Wake County Superior Court on 16 May 1994. Judge Hudson granted defendant's motion to dismiss. But a complaint should not be dismissed for insufficiency unless it appears to a certainty that plaintiff is entitled to no relief under any state of facts which could be proved in support of the claim.
Pleadings are to be liberally construed.
Mere vagueness or lack of detail is not ground for a motion to dismiss, but should be attacked by a motion for a more definite statement. Plaintiff contends the complaint adequately stated a claim against defendant Kerr in both his official capacity and his individual capacity. We shall address the official capacity claim first. Under the doctrine of governmental immunity, a municipality and its officers or employees sued in their official capacities are immune from suit for torts committed while the officers or employees are performing a governmental function. A police officer in the performance of his duties is engaged in a governmental function.