Opinion
April 20, 1987
Appeal from the Court of Claims (McCabe, J.).
Ordered that the judgments are affirmed, without costs or disbursements.
On August 11, 1979, Richard Gantz escaped from the Downstate Correctional Facility in Fishkill. The appellants alleged that the next day they were held hostage by Gantz, as a result of which they suffered emotional and physical injuries.
In order to establish a prima facie case of negligence, a party must demonstrate, inter alia, the breach of a duty owed to him by the alleged tort-feasor (cf., Solomon v City of New York, 66 N.Y.2d 1026). It is well settled that public entities are "immune from negligence claims arising out of the performance of their governmental functions, including police protection, unless the injured person establishes a special relationship with the entity, which would create a specific duty to protect that individual, and the individual relied on the performance of that duty (see De Long v County of Erie, 60 N.Y.2d 296, 304; Florence v Goldberg, 44 N.Y.2d 189, 195; Riss v City of New York, 22 N.Y.2d 579, 583; Motyka v City of Amsterdam, 15 N.Y.2d 134, 139; Bass v City of New York, 38 A.D.2d 407, 413, affd * * * 32 N.Y.2d 894)" (Miller v State of New York, 62 N.Y.2d 506, 510). The claimants neither pleaded nor proved any special relationship with the State, and were consequently owed no duty by the State (see, Smith v City of New York, 122 A.D.2d 133).
In light of our disposition of this issue, we need not pass upon the appellants' other contentions. Thompson, J.P., Weinstein, Kunzeman and Harwood, JJ., concur.