TAMMALA THOMPSON v. STATE OF TENNESSEE - Articles

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TAMMALA THOMPSON v. STATE OF TENNESSEE

Posted by: Azya Thornton on Mar 25, 2026

Court: TN Court of Appeals

Attorneys 1: Leah Yoder and Rocky McElhaney, Hendersonville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Tammala Thompson.

Attorneys 2: Jonathan Skrmetti, Attorney General and Reporter; J. Matthew Rice, Solicitor General; Eric W. Donica, Assistant Attorney General; and Leah E. Traub, Assistant Attorney General, for the appellee, the State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): CLEMENT

This appeal arises from a premises liability action commenced by Tammala Thompson (“Plaintiff”) for injuries she sustained while camping for the weekend at Cedars of Lebanon State Park (“the Park”). Plaintiff alleges that the State of Tennessee (“the State”), which owns and operates the Park, is liable for her injuries because the State negligently maintained an unsafe sidewalk. Relying upon the affirmative defense provided by the Tennessee Recreational Use Statute (“the TRUS”), the State filed a motion to dismiss the complaint. Plaintiff opposed the motion arguing that she was not engaged in recreational activity when the injury occurred because she was walking on a sidewalk; thus, the TRUS is not applicable. She also asserted that sidewalks are “improvements” which are not expressly exempted from liability under the TRUS. Finding the TRUS applicable and that no exceptions applied, the Claims Commission granted the State’s motion to dismiss. We affirm.

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