Tort/Negligence – Negligent Hiring & Retention – Sovereign Immunity – Discretionary Function – Admiralty

The complaint alleges that plaintiff Harold Hoblick, a maritime facility security guard, was assaulted and seriously injured by a crewmember on board the USNS Maury, a vessel owned and operated by the United States. We have held that the waivers of sovereign immunity in both the Suits in Admiralty Act and the Public Vessels Act must be read to include a discretionary function exception. The United States’ decisions to hire and retain an employee are the types of discretionary decisions that are grounded in public policy, and plaintiffs cite no government policy or regulation controlling how the United States hires or retains employees on board the USNS Maury. Pursuant to the discretionary function exception, then, the district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over plaintiffs’ negligent hiring and retention claims.

We affirm the district court’s dismissal of these claims.

Hoblick v. United States (Lawyers Weekly No. 003-030-23, 5 pp.) (Per Curiam) No. 22-1430. Appealed from USDC at Charleston, S.C. (David Norton, J.) Harold Hoblick, Miriam Hoblick, pro se; Michelle Delemarre for appellee. United States Court of Appeals for the  Fourth Circuit (unpublished)