Bouton v. Allstate Insurance Company
Court of Appeal of Louisiana
491 So. 2d 56 (1986)
Three trick-or-treating boys, aged 13 to 15, approached Robert Bouton's (plaintiff) home on Halloween; one, dressed in military costume and holding a plastic toy machine gun, rang the doorbell. Bouton opened the door, saw the costume and toy gun, shut and locked the door, retrieved a real handgun, reopened the door, saw a flash from another boy's camera, and shot and killed the costumed boy. After being tried twice for second-degree murder and acquitted, Bouton sued the insurers of two of the boys (defendants), claiming their actions constituted an assault on him that led to his wrongful prosecution, legal fees, and negative publicity. The trial court granted the insurers summary judgment, and Bouton appealed.
Whether a claim for assault requires that the victim be placed in reasonable apprehension of an imminent injury.