## Facts

- A seven-year-old child suffered third- and fourth-degree burns over much of his body after gasoline ignited.
- The child’s mother, as guardian and next friend, sued two nine-year-old boys, alleging they set a gasoline can on fire and caused the injuries.
- The defendants moved to dismiss, asserting that Georgia law bars tort suits against children under age 13.
- The trial court dismissed the action, and the plaintiff appealed, arguing the governing statute did not create immunity and that a constitutional challenge warranted review.

## Issues

1. Whether O.C.G.A. § 51-11-6 renders children under 13 immune from tort suits in Georgia.
2. Whether the statute should instead be read only to eliminate the “infancy” defense for defendants who have reached the age of criminal discretion, leaving a common-law capacity inquiry for younger children.

## Decision

- The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed the trial court’s dismissal.
- The court held that, under existing Georgia precedent interpreting O.C.G.A. § 51-11-6, minors under age 13 are immune from suit for tort.
- The court declined to overrule its prior statutory construction, noting the legislature’s failure to amend the statute after the court’s long-standing interpretation.

## Legal Principles

- O.C.G.A. § 51-11-6, read with O.C.G.A. § 16-3-1 (setting 13 as the minimum age of criminal responsibility), establishes that children under 13 are not liable in tort.
- Georgia precedent treats the statute as creating a bright-line rule of tort immunity for children under 13, not a case-by-case inquiry into the child’s capacity.
- Stare decisis and legislative inaction after a settled judicial interpretation support retaining that interpretation absent compelling justification for change.

## Conclusion

The court held that Georgia law immunizes children under thirteen from tort suits and affirmed dismissal of claims against two nine-year-old defendants, leaving any change to that rule to the legislature.


Horton v. Hinely, 413 S.E.2d 199 (Ga. 1992)