Posted on 11/23/2010 3:17:49 PM PST by george76
The family of a Utah boy killed by a black bear can move forward with its lawsuit that contends the state didn't do enough to warn them to steer clear of the area where the bear had been seen earlier, the Utah Supreme Court ruled Tuesday.
The court's ruling held that the state isn't immune from a lawsuit in the death of 11-year-old Samuel Ives, who was pulled from his tent and mauled by bear in American Fork Canyon on Father's Day in 2007. A state judge last year dismissed a negligence suit against the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, saying the state was immune from such lawsuits.
"We still have to prove our case, but this clears the path for us to prove our case," said Jonah Orlofsky, an attorney for the Ives family.
(Excerpt) Read more at connect2utah.com ...
My condolences to the family. However, this is a bulls**t law suit. Trial lawyers suck.
This is ridiculous. It the forest. And, it's the forest in UT, not central park. Forests have animals. Some of those animals are dangerous. If you don't know that forests contain potentially deadly animals, then you are a moron and you deserve to be at the mercy of the food chain that you willingly put yourself in the middle of.
Whatever happened to the idea that you've accepted the risk when you've come to the hazard?
The grandfather of an 11-year-old boy who was killed by a black bear blamed authorities for not warning that the hulking animal harassed another group of campers at the same site hours earlier.
That said, these ambulance-chasing bastards should be sued for mis-represtation of a "child endangerment" or "lack of common sense" plaintiff, who failed to exercise due diligence and protection of their child in a hostile environment.
Lawyers become Judges, and Judges entertain the pursuit of DEEP POCKETS (litigation lotto) by these bastards, who only sue the State because the TAXPAYER ends up being fleeced. Without Tort Reform for obvious lack of common sense dismissals, we would not be in the financial messes that we have today, nor would every tool have 14 saftety warning stickers on them, nor would you have cold coffee served at McDonald's....where the consumer pays to cover settled "litigation", which would more correctly be called EXTORTION for stupidity.
With Jury Consultants packing the Jury Box with those who think that some day it will be THEIR turn to cash in, or "the insurance company can afford it", we have a waste of time and money in the Billions of dollars going on.
Bears in the woods. Who knew?
And would ya look at that, the bear’s got sharp stuff on him that hurts people. Shazam.
Too many people today think it is the government's (local/state/fed) responsibility or obligation to protect them from their own stupidity. The constitution guarantees you the right to pursue happiness, not find. And, inherit in that pursuit, is the implicit idea that you can make your own decision, and enjoy the fruits or consequences of those decisions.
Too many people want all the upside of their decisions, and none of the downside. They made a choice to go into the forest. That choice had some risk. They want someone else to compensate them for their decision. That's the problem.
The only liability that the state would have is if they didn’t allow the people in the forest(or woods if you will) to be armed and allowed to defend themselves against wild animal attack.
The end result of protecting people from their folly is a world full of fools. My condolences for the family.
Wild bears, at that! Sheesh!
Two things have contributed to the indoctrination of youth into adulthood thinking 1) you're ALWAYS a victim, never the cause, and 2) political-correctness precludes being identified as having done something stupid (aka, lack of common sense/moral compass).
We even can't have Grades or Scores in children's classes and sports, because SOMEONE will feel like they've "failed".....
Two things have contributed to the indoctrination of youth into adulthood thinking 1) you're ALWAYS a victim, never the cause, and 2) political-correctness precludes being identified as having done something stupid (aka, lack of common sense/moral compass).
We even can't have Grades or Scores in children's classes and sports, because SOMEONE will feel like they've "failed".....
A lot more info in this article. Sympathy for the family but I don't see that a lawsuit is warranted.
If there wasnt an attack the night before, we wouldnt be here arguing it, said Ivess biological father Kevan Francis.
The family claims that there were two chances for the state to warn them of the bear danger. The first was when they went through the gate to get to the campground. The second chance was a little more eerie.
The family passed a Division of Wildlife Resources truck, [that] apparently was the one looking for the bear. They waved at them,
http://www.heraldextra.com/content/view/260604/
My exact thoughts. Especially regarding the lawyers. This family was in the bears neighborhood. A little common sense is too much to ask for here I guess.
Also a good case for why we should be able to be armed while in National forest, to protect our family while in a threatening environment.
The DOW needs to stop importing problem ( three strikes and they are out type ) bears from the larger Yellowstone area , then dumping them in Utah. This bear problem is only recently created... as the pioneers removed the problems from the urban parks long ago.
The DOWs should allow more bear hunting permits and longer bear hunting seasons plus...
Not in favor of lawsuits, but we need to get the attention of the efl /alf / peta...types who have been taking over the DOWs. Not just our Jeniffer
Normally, a case where a random bear attack resulted in a suit should be dismissed. But here the State knew something the family didn't; there was a greater than normal danger, and in fact the rangers saw the people and could have warned them, and didn't. That makes it different.
Coincidentally, the McDonalds case you refer to contained similar elements. Sure, everyone knows coffee is hot. But only McDonalds knew that after brewing, they super heated the coffee to near-boiling. More importantly, only McDonalds knew that their super hot coffee had resulted in over 70 severe burns already.
If it makes you feel any better, this wasn't a case of someone simply getting hot coffee in their lap. The old lady literally had part of her girly bits burned off. Her pantyhose also melted into her legs, requiring numerous skin grafts. And in the end, they ended up settling for about what her medical bills were.
So there may or not be enough evidence to conclude that the state had a duty and failed to perform. that is to be decided in a court of law.
And I don't know what McDonalds you get your coffee at, but when I get it there I have to let it sit a long time before I can drink it.
Okay; just on this ONE issue:
Did the woman exercise due diligence and application of common sense when placing hot coffee (regardless of temperature) between her thighs while driving? In days of old, "would a reasonably prudent man have acted similarly in similar circumstances"?
The RPM (Reasonably Prudent Man) old tried-and-true measure of Common Sense has gone by the wayside, with the proliferation of ambulance-chasers and accomodating Judiciary. That's my point.
In today's parlance; it's ALWAYS somebody elses' fault, so long as they have deep pockets.
"Only McDonalds knew the coffee was super-heated" is no excuse for the absolute stupidity of placing a hot beverage between your thighs and driving away.....your argument is made of whole cloth, and, in actuality, lacks addressing the common sense of the situation.
I don't drink McDonalds coffee, but if you have enough "common sense" to wait for it to cool, then why don't you just drink it hot, then sue for "permanent taste bud damage"....it's "The American Way" in today's litigation lottery.
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