Sovereign immunity — Constitution of Pennsylvania, Article I, Section 11 — Wrongful death and survival actions — State agencies.
1. Under Article I, Section 11 of the Constitution of Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth and its agencies may not be sued without the consent of the Commonwealth, and wrongful death and survival actions brought against the Department of Public Welfare and a state hospital are within such prohibition. [134-5]
OPINION BY JUDGE ROGERS, December 19, 1974:
Plaintiff Joseph M. Tarantino, administrator of the estate of Janice A. Tarantino, deceased, has filed wrongful death and survival actions against the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the Department of Public Welfare and the Allentown State Hospital charging the defendants with negligent and improper treatment of his decedent at Allentown State Hospital. At issue are the defendants' preliminary objections grounded on sovereign immunity.
The complaint must be dismissed. We may not entertain suits against the Commonwealth and its agencies without the consent of the Commonwealth. Pa. Const. Art. I, § 11 (1968); Biello v. Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, 454 Pa. 179, 301 A.2d 849 (1973). The Department of Public Welfare and the Allentown State Hospital, as defendants, are clearly within the scope of constitutional interdiction. McCoy v. Commonwealth, 9 Pa. Commw. 107, 305 A.2d 746 (1973), aff'd per curiam, 457 Pa. 513, 326 A.2d 396 (1974). As we have repeatedly written, most recently in Hart v. Spectrum Arena, Inc., 15 Pa. Commw. 584, 329 A.2d 311 (1974), this court is without power to set aside the Constitution and superior appellate authority.
Williams v. Commonwealth, 12 Pa. Commw. 384, 316 A.2d 685 (1974); Duquesne Light Company v. Department of Transportation, 6 Pa. Commw. 364, 295 A.2d 351 (1972).
The defendants' preliminary objections are sustained and the complaint dismissed.