Spears v. United States
- Patrick Schiltz
- 0:24-cv-04239
- U.S. District Court · District of Minnesota
- 7
In Spears v. United States, Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz dismissed without prejudice the negligence and wrongful-death claims brought by Vicky Spears against the United States because Spears had not been officially appointed as trustee under Minnesota law when she filed her required administrative claim, meaning the court lacked jurisdiction to hear those claims.
People who wish to bring wrongful-death claims against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act, particularly where state law requires a formal court appointment before a person has authority to pursue such a claim. Attorneys and claimants in the Eighth Circuit who must ensure that all required authority — including any state-law preconditions to being an authorized representative — is obtained and documented before or at the time of filing an administrative claim with a federal agency.
What happened
In Spears v. United States (Case No. 24-CV-4239), Vicky Spears sued the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act, a law that allows people to sue the federal government for certain harms caused by federal employees, seeking compensation for the death of her daughter, Amanda Sue Kingbird, who died on June 27, 2022, while held at the Red Lake Detention Center. Under Minnesota law, only a court-appointed trustee can bring a wrongful-death lawsuit, and before filing an FTCA lawsuit in federal court, a claimant must first submit a written claim to the appropriate federal agency — in this case, the Department of the Interior (DOI).
When Spears's attorney first submitted a claim to the DOI in December 2023, Spears had not yet been appointed trustee and provided no evidence she had authority to bring a wrongful-death claim on behalf of her daughter's survivors. A Minnesota state court issued an order in June 2024 directing that Spears 'be appointed' trustee only after she filed a required sworn oath, and Spears included a copy of that order in her June 2024 request for reconsideration to the DOI. However, Spears did not actually file the required oath until February 20, 2025 — months after the DOI denied her reconsideration request — meaning she had never formally become trustee during the entire time her administrative claim was pending.
Chief Judge Schiltz granted the United States' motion to dismiss Counts I and II (the negligence and wrongful-death claims against the United States), finding that because Spears was not a properly appointed trustee when she presented her claim to the agency, she never satisfied the FTCA's requirement of filing a valid administrative claim — a requirement the court treated as jurisdictional, meaning the court has no power to hear those claims at all. The dismissal is without prejudice, meaning Spears is not permanently barred from refiling, though the opinion does not address whether any refiling would be timely. Claims against unnamed Red Lake Detention Center staff members in their individual capacities remain pending.
The detailed version
- Spears v. United States, No. 24-CV-4239 (PJS/LIB), United States District Court, District of Minnesota
- Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz
- July 31, 2025
Background
Plaintiff Vicky Spears, individually and as trustee for the next-of-kin of her deceased daughter Amanda Sue Kingbird, sued the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), 28 U.S.C. § 2671 et seq., asserting negligence and wrongful-death claims (Counts I and II). Kingbird died on June 27, 2022, while in custody at the Red Lake Detention Center, which Spears alleged was overseen by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), a component of the Department of the Interior (DOI). (The United States disputed that it operates the Center, asserting it is run by the Red Lake Band of Chippewa under a Self-Governance Compact with the BIA, but did not move to dismiss on that ground.)
FTCA Administrative Exhaustion Requirement
The FTCA waives the United States' sovereign immunity — its general protection from being sued — for certain torts committed by federal employees, but only under strict conditions. Before filing an FTCA suit in federal court, a claimant must first present the claim in writing to the appropriate federal agency. 28 U.S.C. § 2675(a). The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has held that a properly presented FTCA claim by a representative must include evidence of the representative's authority to act on behalf of the claim's beneficiaries under state law. Mader v. United States, 654 F.3d 794, 803 (8th Cir. 2011) (en banc). Compliance with this presentment requirement is jurisdictional — without it, a federal court lacks the power to hear the case.
Minnesota Wrongful-Death Trustee Requirement
Under Minnesota law, only a trustee appointed pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 573.02, subd. 3, may bring a wrongful-death action. The appointment is conditioned on the trustee filing a consent and oath before commencing duties. Minn. Stat. § 573.02, subd. 3.
Timeline of Events
- December 5, 2023: Attorney Oliver Nelson submitted an administrative claim (SF-95 form) to the DOI on behalf of Spears. The submission identified Spears as Kingbird's mother and sought compensation, but did not state the capacity in which Spears was acting and included no evidence she was authorized to pursue a wrongful-death claim. Spears had not yet petitioned to be appointed trustee. - June 3, 2024: The DOI denied the claim. - June 4, 2024: A Minnesota state court issued an order directing that Spears "be appointed trustee" upon the filing of a required oath pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 358.06. - June 18, 2024: Nelson submitted a request for reconsideration to the DOI, attaching the June 4 court order. The cover letter described it as an appointment order. - June 26, 2024: The DOI denied reconsideration. - February 20, 2025: Spears filed the required oath in Minnesota state court — months after the DOI had denied her reconsideration request.
The Court's Ruling
The United States moved to dismiss Counts I and II under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction, bringing a factual challenge (meaning the court did not accept the complaint's allegations as true but instead evaluated the evidence). The party asserting federal jurisdiction bears the burden of proving jurisdictional facts by a preponderance of the evidence (i.e., more likely than not).
Chief Judge Schiltz agreed with the United States and granted the motion to dismiss, for two overlapping reasons:
1. December 2023 submission was deficient: Spears was not a trustee and provided no evidence of authority to bring a wrongful-death claim when Nelson first filed the administrative claim. Spears effectively conceded this point.
2. June 2024 reconsideration submission was also insufficient: Although Spears submitted the June 4, 2024 court order with her reconsideration request, that order did not actually appoint her as trustee — it only directed that she "be appointed" upon filing the required oath. She did not file that oath until February 20, 2025, months after the DOI denied reconsideration. Accordingly, she had never actually become trustee while her administrative claim was under consideration.
Spears argued that Ariola v. City of Stillwater, 889 N.W.2d 340 (Minn. Ct. App. 2017), saved her claim because the Minnesota Court of Appeals held in that case that the oath requirement is not jurisdictional and may be cured. The court rejected this argument on two grounds: (a) the issue here is not whether the DOI had jurisdiction to consider the claim, but whether Spears submitted sufficient evidence of her authority — and she could not have, since she had not yet filed the oath; and (b) Ariola is distinguishable because the June 4, 2024 order, by its plain terms, had not yet made Spears a trustee — it was contingent on filing the oath.
Disposition
Counts I and II (negligence and wrongful-death claims against the United States) are dismissed without prejudice for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. Dismissal without prejudice means Spears is not permanently barred from refiling, though the opinion does not address timeliness or any other obstacle to refiling. Individual-capacity claims against unnamed Red Lake Detention Center staff (John Does 1–5) remain pending and were not affected by this ruling.
Note on attorney authority
The United States also argued that Nelson's December 2023 submission was deficient for failing to establish his own authority to act on Spears's behalf. The court declined to reach that issue, having found the lack of trustee authority independently sufficient to dismiss.
Reviewer note from the AI+
Read the full 7-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.