Posted on 12/11/2006 5:07:52 PM PST by tsmith130
Of course they would, but there aren't many responsible people anymore.
Did they check the caller's car for signs of damage? I'm guessing they did. I just don't understand someone seeing a car in the water & leaving.
googling "CA good samaritan law" brings up lots and lots of links.
One of them takes you to this.
* "Good Samaritan Law," passed by California in 1959
o No legal obligation to provide aid
o Immunity from malpractice suit if aid is provided
o Applies to outside of hospitals only
o Withdrawal of legal immunity if payment accepted
Copyright 2001 by the University of Florida
Since I am not driving in CA, I am not going to pursue it further other than to say that I found recent discussions by lawyers of the CA good samaritan law in which it was pointed out that you are not protected by CA law if you engage in any attempted life saving activity in which you have not had training.
For instance, if you gave CPR and caused injury, you are not protected in CA.
NC specifically states that you are protected so long as you acted reasonably.
It appears that CA law is written only to protect those who are EMC, medical or other trained emergency workers.
So a blanket statement that you are required to stop and render assistance could cause someone to get in legal doo-doo, if they followed that advice.
Therefore, asking for a link is not off the wall.
If you want a real eye opener, try this:
http://firstaid.about.com/od/medicallegal/Legal_and_Liability_Issues_Related_to_Rescue_and_First_Aid.htm
See post 513.
So, the grassy embankment was "level with the roadway". I was wrong then about not being able to see the tire tracks because they were over the edge of the road and down a slope.
Normally, an embankment is sloping down from the roadway.
I don't get why the guardrail was down the embankment, though. You hit a tree first, *then* the guardrail that was supposed to keep you from hitting the tree?
Apparently in 1999, California amended the laws to remove liability from Good Samaritans who performed assistance in good faith.
http://www.swc.cc.ca.us/~kjacobs/goodsam.htm
My guess is that they didn't. There is no real investigatory law enforcement in North Carolina. I cannot imagine seeing headlights on, under water, and not stopping. That is a completely irresponsible thing for a driver to do.
Again, I am not here to argue. Any decent, responsible human being would have stopped at at least waited for the police to get there.
I can't tell whether that applies to passersby.
Morally, he should have.
Except on that road, if he was driving 75, by the time he made the call, he was miles from the accident scene.
That said, if you're cruising along a highway, "leaving the scene" is a misnomer. By the time you figure out what you just saw and (if you're a decent human being) try to stop, you're a mile past the scene ... try backing up a highway for that length.
FYI: TommyDale, I don't think you're a racist for thinking the driver is a horrible human. I think you draw suspicion though when you draw race into a matter that has nothing to do with it.
Here's the whole call:
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=central&id=4847889
Race may not be an issue at all. I hope not. But I heard the call, and I heard comments frow law enforcement personnel afterward that raised a red flag to me that perhaps the driver was either not believable, or was afraid of waiting for the police because he may have had something else going on in his car. I-95 is known for major drug running, and blacks are often stopped for "driving while black" if you get the picture... Perhaps the caller was afraid of his own car being searched.
I just looked at the map, from where he called from -- IF he knew exactly where he was -- I don't think there's another exit until Mile 145, and after that, it's another five miles.
He could have been further up the road than he thought; my husband is forever asking me "Where are you?" and I can't even remember the last exit I passed, much less the mile marker.
Evidently they went to where he said he saw it and stayed 22 minutes, looking around. Now, as I said, the EMS went, the Nash County Sheriff, and the Highway Patrol; somehow, I think those men are dedicated enough to have found something if there was anything that COULD have been seen.
They cover that stretch of road, which is ALWAYS on the news because it is deadly, all the time; and as one of them said early on, people call them all the time and say there was a wreck and somebody is broken down or wrecked and when they get there, there's nothing there.
I really feel for all those guys because I have no doubt there will be a lawsuit and they will be raked over the coals.
If you're going to inject race into this, you'd better have a link.
On that road, many drivers think I-95 means "Speed Limit 95".
Absolutely. People not familiar with that road have no idea what goes on there; it's the main north-south highway and it's one of the most traveled in the country.
And it's LOADED with trucks that aren't up to code and trucks carrying illegals.
My guess is that they didn't. There is no real investigatory law enforcement in North Carolina. I cannot imagine seeing headlights on, under water, and not stopping. That is a completely irresponsible thing for a driver to do.
I only drive 95 from I-40 south, but believe me, I get in the right lane and mind my own business until way past Fayetteville, even into South Carolina.
It's like the damn AutoBahn.
Exactly. So he calls 911 and then would have to drive 10-20 miles to get back to the site ... when he had every reason to believe the cops would already be there.
I'm not saying I would do what he did -- but I don't think driving by a 70mph can be accused of leaving the scene and for them to release his name ... I'm shocked.
I said, "Race may not be an issue at all. I hope not."
First you said:
"While the caller may not have been required to stay, any responsible human being would have done so. Of course, I will be labeled a racist for saying that I suppose."
... when no one else on this whole 500< post thread had mentioned race.
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