'Good Samaritan' can be sued after pulling friend from car wreckage

reply to post by Valhall


California does have a good samaritan law. The courts have ruled that the law only applies to those providing medical assistance (the last sentence quoted in the OP is cut off in mid sentence).

So if there's a police shootout, and I run up and pull a child out of the line of fire, I can be sued if the child gets a bruise in the process.

But if the kid gets hit and I break a rib while performing CPR, i'm in the clear.

The question is, will the courts blow it again later and completely invalidate the good samaritan law. If they blew a slam dunk like this, anything is possible. Hence my current inclination not to bother renewing my certifications.

When I was in the Army training for medic duty, they told us we'd probably get sued if we helped civilians. Your tax dollars at work, but that's the system we make. They were probably right.

Originally posted by Unlimitedpossibilities
One person exhibiting empathy and another lacking it is not harmony. "like a rag doll" is subjective. If I am severely injured and someone moves me in a way to save me, I am sure I will be thinking they are not being careful. However, that does not mean I shouldn't be grateful in the end.

The key phrase here is "Alexandra Van Horn claims that Lisa Torti.....". CLAIMS

[edit on 20-12-2008 by Unlimitedpossibilities]

Exactly. One poor woman is paralyzed, and now she needs a scapegoat. So, what does she say? "Oh, she treated me like I was a rag doll".

I'm with the OP on this one. Had a lot of first aid, CPR, triage, etc. training when I worked in SF, and I was glad I could possibly help. Now, I would have to basically turn my back if this ruling stands.

Bad, bad decision.

Originally posted by FredT

'Good Samaritan' can be sued after pulling friend from car wreckage

www.tel egraph.co.uk

Alexandra Van Horn claims that Lisa Torti pulled her out of the vehicle, which had just crashed into a lamp post at 45mph, "like a rag doll" and contributed to her injuries.

Miss Torti, who was travelling in the car behind, says she believed the wrecked vehicle was about to burst into flames.

In a landmark decision that critics have said only proves the maxim that no good deed goes unpunished, the court decided that California's Good Samaritan law only protects people from liability

(visit the link for the full news article)

This is a classic example of why judges should not write laws, apart from it being the job of Legislatures.

Judges who legislate from the bench have violated their oath of office and the Constitution and should be removed. Unfortunately, most Legislatures are made up of people who don't take their job seriously.

Originally posted by centurion1211

Originally posted by Unlimitedpossibilities
One person exhibiting empathy and another lacking it is not harmony. "like a rag doll" is subjective. If I am severely injured and someone moves me in a way to save me, I am sure I will be thinking they are not being careful. However, that does not mean I shouldn't be grateful in the end.

The key phrase here is "Alexandra Van Horn claims that Lisa Torti.....". CLAIMS

[edit on 20-12-2008 by Unlimitedpossibilities]

Exactly. One poor woman is paralyzed, and now she needs a scapegoat. So, what does she say? "Oh, she treated me like I was a rag doll".

I'm with the OP on this one. Had a lot of first aid, CPR, triage, etc. training when I worked in SF, and I was glad I could possibly help. Now, I would have to basically turn my back if this ruling stands.

Bad, bad decision.

The silliness of the ruling is the to protect themselves, Good Samaritans will now have to perform CPR on anyone they rescue, whether they need it or not, just to protect themselves.

reply to post by Valhall


Sadly No Val, California does have a the provision in place. I suspect the whole case will reside on if the jury is or is not convinced that the woman has a reasonable reason for moving her out of the car.

Its all so shady and underhanded it seems. im hoping that there is alot of backlash at this so that the bumbling politicos we have take action to prevent this from occuring in the future.