Garratt v. Dailey

Facts

On July 16, 1951, Brian Dailey, who was five years and nine months old, was visiting with Naomi Garratt in the backyard of the home of her sister, Ruth Garratt. Both women were adults. Ruth Garratt came out into the yard. She claimed that, as she started to sit down in a wood and canvas lawn chair, Brian deliberately pulled it out from under her. Only Naomi testified to that, and the trial court did not accept her testimony. It adopted Brian's version instead. It found that Brian picked up the lightly built lawn chair, moved it sideways a few feet, and sat in it. He then saw Ruth Garratt about to sit down where the chair had been. He hurriedly got up and tried to move the chair toward her to help her sit in it. Because of his small size and lack of dexterity, he could not get it under her in time. She fell to the ground and fractured her hip. The court also found that Brian had no wilful or unlawful purpose, no intent to injure her, no intent to bring about an unauthorized or offensive contact with her, and no purpose to play a prank or commit an assault and battery. It also found that Brian was a visitor in the yard.

Issues

1. Does a defendant act with the intent battery requires when he knows with substantial certainty that a harmful contact will result, even if he has no purpose to injure or embarrass the plaintiff?
2. Did the trial court's findings, which ruled out any purpose to injure or play a prank, clearly decide whether Brian knew with substantial certainty that Garratt would try to sit down where the chair had been?
3. Does a young child's age change the rule of intent for battery?

Holding

Brian committed a battery if, when he moved the chair, he knew with substantial certainty that Garratt would try to sit down where it had been, even without any purpose to injure or embarrass her. Because the findings did not clearly decide that question, the court remanded for clarification instead of entering judgment or ordering a new trial. The adult rule applies to him; his age matters only in deciding what he knew.