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A cop killing an innocent civilian at a nonviolent traffic stop can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence. We use the word "accident", but it

by Jiro 4y ago

A cop killing an innocent civilian at a nonviolent traffic stop can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence. We use the word "accident", but it's never really an accident. If a nurse accidentally kills someone, it may really be an accident. Furthermore, the nurse is in a profession where people die all the time due to reasons beyond the nurse's control, and surviving relatives are not always rational in who they blame. So nurses will be falsely accused much more often than police.

wonderwonder 4y ago
"can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence" Negligence means "failure to take proper care in doing something", which is often just called an accident. That is exactly what the nurse did, she failed to take proper care and someone died. The nice thing about the law is that what the relatives feel should not matter at all, that's why we are supposed to have impartial prosecutors that review the facts and determine if charges are warranted. Bottom line, no matter the profession if you fail to take proper care and someone dies as a result, you should be prosecuted and prevented from getting the opportunity to do it again.
- Jiro 4y ago
  >Negligence means "failure to take proper care in doing something", which is often just called an accident. This is not true, because you're equivocating on the word "proper". An accident is failure to take proper care, where proper care means "care that follows the rules". Negligence is failure to take proper care, where "proper" means "can reasonably be expected". They are not the same thing.
  - wonderwonder 4y ago
    Not really sure where you are getting those definitions from. Proper means proper. The nurse did not follow the rules. The nurse did not provide any of the care that could have been reasonably expected. Fail to see a difference, she failed both of your definitions.
    - Jiro 4y ago
      It is possible for there to be rules that someone cannot be reasonably expected to follow.
ethbr0 4y ago
> A cop killing an innocent civilian at a nonviolent traffic stop can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence. I'm not sure this is true, specifically because the difference between a nonviolent traffic stop and a lethal (to the officer) traffic stop can be a split second. If my keyboard had a 0.01% chance of lethally shocking me... I'm pretty sure that would alter my typing behavior.
- watwut 4y ago
  You are widely overestimating the risk that cop will be shot in traffic stop. It is much lower then 0.01%. The biggest cause for police death are traffic accidents.
dragonwriter 4y ago
> A cop killing an innocent civilian at a nonviolent traffic stop can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence. This was found to be by recklessness, which is beyond negligence but short of malice. > We use the word "accident", but it's never really an accident. Acts due to negligence, and even recklessness, really are accidents. > Furthermore, the nurse is in a profession where people die all the time due to reasons beyond the nurse's control, and surviving relatives are not always rational in who they blame. Surviving relatives don't make prosecutorial decisions, nor are they triers of fact in criminal cases. > So nurses will be falsely accused much more often than police. That...doesn't follow from what you’ve described, even taking everything preceding it as true.

by Jiro 4y ago

wonderwonder 4y ago

"can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence" Negligence means "failure to take proper care in doing something", which is often just called an accident. That is exactly what the nurse did, she failed to take proper care and someone died. The nice thing about the law is that what the relatives feel should not matter at all, that's why we are supposed to have impartial prosecutors that review the facts and determine if charges are warranted. Bottom line, no matter the profession if you fail to take proper care and someone dies as a result, you should be prosecuted and prevented from getting the opportunity to do it again.

Jiro 4y ago
>Negligence means "failure to take proper care in doing something", which is often just called an accident. This is not true, because you're equivocating on the word "proper". An accident is failure to take proper care, where proper care means "care that follows the rules". Negligence is failure to take proper care, where "proper" means "can reasonably be expected". They are not the same thing.
- wonderwonder 4y ago
  Not really sure where you are getting those definitions from. Proper means proper. The nurse did not follow the rules. The nurse did not provide any of the care that could have been reasonably expected. Fail to see a difference, she failed both of your definitions.
  - Jiro 4y ago
    It is possible for there to be rules that someone cannot be reasonably expected to follow.

ethbr0 4y ago

> A cop killing an innocent civilian at a nonviolent traffic stop can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence. I'm not sure this is true, specifically because the difference between a nonviolent traffic stop and a lethal (to the officer) traffic stop can be a split second. If my keyboard had a 0.01% chance of lethally shocking me... I'm pretty sure that would alter my typing behavior.

watwut 4y ago
You are widely overestimating the risk that cop will be shot in traffic stop. It is much lower then 0.01%. The biggest cause for police death are traffic accidents.

dragonwriter 4y ago

> A cop killing an innocent civilian at a nonviolent traffic stop can pretty much happen only because of malice or negligence. This was found to be by recklessness, which is beyond negligence but short of malice. > We use the word "accident", but it's never really an accident. Acts due to negligence, and even recklessness, really are accidents. > Furthermore, the nurse is in a profession where people die all the time due to reasons beyond the nurse's control, and surviving relatives are not always rational in who they blame. Surviving relatives don't make prosecutorial decisions, nor are they triers of fact in criminal cases. > So nurses will be falsely accused much more often than police. That...doesn't follow from what you’ve described, even taking everything preceding it as true.