I would think that teaching them how to use a defibrillator would be pretty damned obvious.
Would the world be a better place if he spent 15 years in prison?
Um, yeah, it is roughly similar, despite the patronzing little “um” at the start of your post. It’s similar to the extent that in both cases the suggestion is being made that the punishment should be lessened based on how likely it is they would do it again. I’d be willing to bet that this idiot would refrain from killing anyone with a defibrillator again even if he never saw the inside of a prison cell. Yet, he’s going to prison anyway! Go figure!
Wrong.
The suggestion is being made that the punishment should be lessoned based on how likely it is that they would do something similar again. Only an idiot would think that he was referring to the specifics of the act.
By saying ‘shock you something awful’, you obviously grasp the fact the device could cause injury or, at the very least, serious pain.
Is there really anyone who hasn’t seen one of these things used? If not on a news report, then on a TV show or movie? Seen the way a near lifeless body jumps when it’s shocked? Seen the way those who use it take great care to ensure no one else is touching the body they are shocking?
He may not have intended to kill her. But he HAD to realize that there was a potential for injury, and he damn well knew it was gonna hurt like hell.
10 years doesn’t really seem out of line at all. Especially when we realize that he’ll only do 4 or 5 before they kick him loose.
Oh for fuck’s sake, could you split that hair any finer? It’s pretty likely that the fuckstick won’t ever do anything similar again even if he doesn’t go to prison, is that better? I’m pretty confident that whether given 2 years or ten, the fuckstick won’t be shocking people or jabbing them with discarded needles or wrapping their heads in gauze until they suffocate or go in for any other merry pranksterism with medical supplies. This should have an effect on his punishment for willfully endangering someone’s life after being told that what he was doing was dangerous, and in fact ending it…how exactly?
And, if one wants to get specific, one could take a look back at what inspired my comments and one would find that Palooka did not limit his assertion to “do[ing] something similar again.” He also said “serious threat to people.” If you’re going to hang your pointy hat on that, at least hang it on the actual hook.
Or you could give up this mania you have for grasping at the most fragmentary of straws and, should you happen to catch one, pretending like it’s somehow meaningful. But I won’t hold my breath on that one.
It’s amazing that around here no matter how egregious the act, somebody invariably will argue for the opposition.
I’m all for blowing off steam and depending on your workplace, some types of horseplay may be acceptable. That said, when I went through paramedical training, it was stressed that the Lifepak was not something to screw around with. a) You can be injured or killed from improper use, and b) if you fuck it up playing around, the tool isn’t available when needed to cardiovert the patient.
Too bad, Mom, your son’s a fuckwit, and he should go to jail for a long time.
It’s invoulentary manslaughter because the intent to kill is not provable.
Yep, I do disagree with that.
I also disagree that a suspended sentence with no time served (which is what Palooka originally proposed) is functionally any different than saying what moron did was okay. The sentence should fit the crime, and a ‘no time served’ sentence implies the crime was trivial, which this was not. Such being the case, I stand by my earlier statement. Sarcastic as it is, it’s not a straw man.
Yes, it would. It would mean we live in a world where this sort of behavior is unacceptable.
Point of fact, I never said 15 years. If I were able to dicatate his sentence, it would be 10 years without early parole. As it stands, my guess is that he will do 30 months.
No kidding.
See, people say “clear” for a reason when they use those things, because even touching the patient while they are being shocked could kill you. Presumably he had been in a situation where he had seen the defibrillator being used and had been asked to stand back while it was done- and if he didn’t know why he could have asked.
Someone should have worked out he was too stupid to be an EMT well before he got to ride around in an ambulance.
10 years sounds about right, not because he meant to kill her, but because there was clearly a possibility that serious injury or death would result and he did it anyway.
What boggles my mind is this quote by his mother:
Has it honestly escaped her notice that Ms. Rhoton and her kids, for that matter, paid for her son’s mistake with the rest of her life, not for it? Because her son decided to have a little fun by hurting another humam being, two little kids have lost their mother and a woman who seemed to be trying hard to provide for them lost her life.
There’s something else I noticed while I was hunting up the quotes. He didn’t do this while they were fooling around in a firehouse or some such; he did it while they were riding in a ambulance. Here’s a quote from the relevant portion of the article:
She couldn’t get away from him, and he took advantage of that. I’m sure the driver could have done without the distraction as well.
Sorry, lady. Your son decided to have fun by hurting someone and, as a result, killed her. She’s paid a much higher price than he did.
There’s a reason why they yell ‘clear!’* before they use these devices, right; nobody, especially if they have medical training, could be ignorant of the risks.
*Even if this is ever only uttered on TV shows, it is still firmly embedded in the minds of most of the public (and it should be so in ALL trained medics) that this is a potentially dangerous device, capable of delivering a powerful electric shock. He has no excuse.
“He’s a good kid!” My fucking arse.
He’s an irresponsible moron.
In Georgia (and probably most other states), there is something called the Felony Murder Rule, which means that if someone dies as a result of a felony that you’re commiting, you can be charged with murder even if you didn’t intent to kill them. The causation can actually be fairly remote- I ran across one case a couple of years ago where a man stabbed his wife. The wound was decidedly non-fatal, and she was in the hospital for a couple of days. While she was there, she was given a medication that caused a fatal stomach bleed. Husband was convicted of felony murder, and the appeals court affirmed it.
In this case, it seems like he could have been prosecuted for felony murder, the felony being aggravated assault (committing an act which is likely to or does cause serious bodily injury or death), even if he didn't mean to kill her. So, yeah, I'd say he got a pretty good deal. And I've dealt with those "my son isn't like all of those other criminals" mamas a lot. They're frequently most of the problem, because her baby has never had to be accountable for anything.
Obligatory discalimer- this post is not intended, and should not be relied upon as legal advice.
Send the fucker to the chair. That’d be irony too rich too spread on toast.
I’m all for killing stupid people. It should reset the world population level to somewhere around 750CE levels. More room, less consumption of resources. When do we start?
Mangetout that’s exactly why they say clear. It’s taught in ACLS and it’s certainly expected in the street.
katie1341, my understanding is that this is actually something that’s part of US common law, if not actually de jure legal code for each state.
“Involuntary” in this case doesn’t have the same meaning as the non-legal term. “Involuntary” means “unintended.” It can also be called “unintentional manslaughter” or “negligent manslaughter.” (Negligence = breach of a duty of care)
Absolutely. On any medical show, they always yell, “CLEAR!” before anyone shocks the person, meaning, get the fuck away I’m gonna be shocking someone.
He (and you) also apparent believe that it’s okay to “shock someone awful” so long as it isn’t potentially fatal. That’s bullcrap. Even if it was absolutely impossible to kill someone with the machine, he should still have been fired and charged with battery. Hurting people is not an acceptable form of fun.