City Council
259 N. Wilma Avenue
Ripon, CA 95366
MEMO
To: Honorable City Council
From: Lisa Roos, City Clerk & Finance Director
Date: 03/14/2023
Subject: Claim - Pamela Denise Tipton, Aviana Elise Gallardo, and Sadielynn Denicia Gallardo
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
The City’s claim adjustor has investigated the submitted three claims and is recommending the City Council reject the claims.
BACKGROUND:
Individuals who believe a municipality such as the City of Ripon is responsible for a loss that they have experienced may file a claim with that municipality. The City Clerk is responsible to process any claim received in a manner that is consistent with the Government Code. The following summarizes how a typical claim is processed:
1. City Clerk reviews the claim to determine if the claim submitted is complete. If it is found to be complete, the claim is forwarded to the City’s claims adjustor for processing. If the claim is determined not to be complete, the City Clerk returns to the individual as incomplete.
2. The City of Ripon is a member of the Central San Joaquin Valley Risk Management Association (CSJVRMA), which consists of 54 cities in the Central Valley that selfinsure liability losses through a pool. The CSJVRMA claims adjustor reviews all liability claims for the facts of the incident including videos, police report, interviews all individuals involved in the incident, etc. The adjustor will also review applicable local, state and federal laws to determine the City’s liability in the incident.
3. If the claims adjustor finds the City is responsible for the damages filed in the claim, he or she will submit those findings to the City Clerk for processing. If the amount of damages is less than $5,000, the City Administrator has the authority to approve the payment of the damage. If the amount of damages is greater than $5,000, the City Clerk will place on the City Council agenda for approval to pay the claim.
4. If the claims adjustor finds the City is not responsible for the damages filed in the claim, he or she will submit those findings to the City Clerk and recommend the City Council reject the claim.
5. If the claim is rejected by the City Council, the City Clerk sends a “notice of rejection” to the claimant, which advises the claimant they have six months to file a court action.
6. After the claimant has been paid or 6 months has passed since the rejection, the City’s claim adjuster issues a “closing report” to staff and staff closes the claim and files it.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS:
Pamela Denise Tipton, Aviana Elise Gallardo by Pamela Denise Tipton as her guardian, and Sadielynn Denicia Gallardo by Pamela Denise Tipton as her guardian submitted three separate claims to the City of Ripon on February 13, 2023 for the wrongful death of Larry Alton Tipton, Jr. The claims are identical and claim that the roundabout at River Road and N. Ripon Road was improperly designed and constructed, which created a dangerous condition; the streets and street conditions of the roadway leading to and surrounding the roundabout were improperly designed and constructed, which also created a dangerous condition; there were improper warnings for the dangerous condition, including but not limited to improper signage, deficient striping, lack of proper speed warnings, lack of warning of the existence of the roundabout and other warnings; the design of the roundabout is in violation of the Highway Design Manual, California Manual of Uniform Control Devices and other applicable state and federal codes, regulations and requirement; the City failed to properly inspect the dangerous condition and negligently maintained the road; and the improper and deficient design, construction or implementation of the roundabout at the intersection created a dangerous condition and false expectations for motorists traveling on River Road.
The CSJVRMA claims adjustor has reviewed the three claims submitted, the Ripon Police Department report from that incident, photos of the scene, and the City’s accident history at the location. The claims adjuster states that there is no liability for the wrongful death of Mr. Larry Alton Tipton, Jr. as he was driving under the influence of alcohol with the BAC two times the legal limit at 0.18. He also states that all signs and lights were in good condition and pavement markings were well marked.
Accordingly, it is the claims adjustor’s recommendation that these matters be submitted to the City Council for all three claims to be rejected.