I wonder are agents of the goverment subject to any type of penalty if they fail to perform the actions the goverment pays them to perform and it results in death? For example are the idiot cops that were supposed to protect Brandon Teena after she reported being raped in jail right now? Or the idiot cops that brought Konerak Sinthasomphone back to Jeffrey Dahmer’s house? Or is judge Judith Retchin that sentenced a man who medics told her would die in prison to ten days of prison? And if they are not should they be legally speaking?
Brandon Teena’s mother filed a wrongful death suit against the county and the sheriff and was awarded damages. AFAIK the sheriff was not criminally prosecuted.
The police in the Dahmer case were cleared of any wrongdoing (unable to find a link but living in Wisconsin I remember the outrage from the black, Asian and gay communities).
Dunno about Retchin.
Police, judges and other government officials have limited immunity from liability when performing duties related to their positions. I’ll let a lawyer explain the intricacies of it if one’s interested.
I doubt very seriously we could ever see a judge prosecuted for anything like this. I mean, if you start prosecuting judges criminally for their interpretations of the law (even if these interpretations are found to be widely incorrect by the legal establishment) then the independence of our judiciary is dealt a harsh blow.
Police officers I think you could seek damages against them but I think it would be very very difficult to get a criminal verdict.