Quote:
Originally Posted by 572cv
Dead Man proffers some pretty harsh observations, but not altogether inaccurate ones. We have a system of law that supports innocence until proven guilty. Essentially, in an interaction between entities or peoples governed by US law, there is assumed to be no fault unless proven otherwise. No, I’m not a lawyer, and this is my impression as a citizen. Combine this with human nature, and human foibles, and you have the situations he describes. So, we have a systematic issue.
It is not this way in every country. Some systems of law allow the presumption of guilt instead: You are presumed guilty unless you can prove otherwise.
When applied to a car hitting a pedestrian or cyclist or a horse or any more vulnerable target, the driver is held to a standard of care, and trained as such. Why not? Is there any way that our legal system could embrace any aspect of this approach ? Is there any past legal precedent that could serve as a basis for systematic overhaul? We are all entitled to use the public roads, but we are unequals. I wish I had an answer that represented positive change.
|
The presumption of innocence is something we should hope we never lose. If you, your family or friend are on the wrong end of the stick you’ll be thankful for it. To make this either/or seems to make sense when we are confronted with these senseless events, but either/or does not address the nearly infinite range of culpability and damages.
On the other hand, you’ll likely never hear about the civil actions that follow on an incident where someone is seriously injured. Maybe only where celebrity is involved. Its mostly boring and takes a long time to settle. Nothing newsworthy there most of the time. But its still happening hidden in the noise.
Participation in either the criminal or civil justice systems is no trip to the amusement park. Best thing ever is to never go to either. But when there’s nothing else, the imperfect system does its best to make things right. Problem is, sometimes there is nothing anyone can do to make it right.