DANIEL B. POWELL VS. SAN FRANCISCO FIRE DEPARTMENT ET AL

Matter on the Law & Motion / Discovery calendar for Wednesday, August 27, 2025, Line 4. DEFENDANT CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO's MOTION FOR JUDGMENT ON THE PLEADINGS.

The City and County of San Francisco's motion for judgment on the pleadings in favor of London Breed, its former mayor, is granted without leave to amend. Government Code, section 820.9, provides "Members of city councils, mayors, . . . and members of locally appointed or elected advisory bodies are not vicariously liable for injuries caused by the act or omission of the public entity or advisory body." The operative complaint does not plead any nonconclusory facts about Breed's participation in the events of the case, and plaintiff Daniel Powell offers no facts he could plead on amendment. If employees of the City committed torts against Powell, the City itself may be vicariously liable but section 820.9 precludes vicarious liability by the mayor.

The City further seeks to stay this case because it is based on the same incident and similar claims that give rise to an earlier lawsuit by Powell, Powell v. San Francisco Fire Department et al., San Francisco Superior Court Case No. CGC-24-616508. The court takes judicial notice of the court records of that case and concludes that the actions do indeed arise out of the same events. "The pendency of another earlier action growing out of the same transaction and between the same parties is a ground for abatement of the second action." (Leadford v. Leadford (1992) 6 Cal.App.4th 571, 574.) The court therefore issues an interlocutory judgment of abatement and stays this action pending the resolution of Case No. CGC-24-616508.

For the 9:00 a.m. calendar, all attorneys and parties may appear in Department 301 remotely or in person. Remote hearings will be conducted by videoconference using Zoom. (Dept. 301 Zoom ID 161 502 4290; Passcode 700956.) To appear remotely at the hearing, go to the court's website at sfsuperiorcourt.org under "Online Services," navigate to "Tentative Rulings," and click on the appropriate link, or dial the corresponding phone number.

Any party who contests a tentative ruling must send an email to contestdept301tr@sftc.org with a copy to all other parties by 4pm stating, without argument, the portion(s) of the tentative ruling that the party contests. The subject line of the email shall include the line number, case name and case number. The text of the email shall include the name and contact information, including email address, of the attorney or party who will appear at the hearing.

Counsel for the prevailing party is required to prepare a proposed order which repeats verbatim the substantive portion of the tentative ruling and must email it to contestdept301tr@sftc.org prior to the hearing even if the tentative ruling is not contested.

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