Davidson v. City of Westminster
Supreme Court of California
649 P.2d 894 (1982)
After a series of stabbings at nearby laundromats, City of Westminster (defendant) police officers watched a laundromat where Davidson (plaintiff) was present, observed a man matching the attacker's description enter and exit multiple times, but never warned Davidson before she was stabbed by that man. Davidson sued for negligence based on the officers' failure to warn her; the trial court dismissed the suit for lack of a duty to warn, and Davidson appealed.
Whether a duty to warn a person might arise if a special relationship exists between the actor and a third party that imposes a duty upon the actor to control the third party's conduct or a special relationship exists between the actor and the person that gives the person a right to protection.