When a person is injured on a state highway, when a foster child is abused or when a released prisoner commits a horrible crime, sometimes it’s because state employees were negligent in performing their jobs. In those cases, it makes sense that the state would pay damages.
But should it pay more than any other state?
That’s the case now because Washington exposes itself to more liability than any other state in the Union. In fact, compared to states of equal population, Washington paid out four to 12 times the amount in judgments last year.
Take Massachusetts and Arizona, for instance. With comparable populations of about 6.5 million, they only paid out $13 million and $8.5 million, respectively, in 2009. Washington paid out more than $50 million – plus spent another $19 million in legal costs fighting the lawsuits.
That’s almost $70 million that isn’t going toward such state duties as fixing highways, providing oversight of foster children and tracking released prisoners – the very actions that could prevent future injuries, deaths and lawsuits.