Should there be a law?

I've been wanting to post on this since last week, but did you see the story about the elderly Hartford, Conn., man who walked into the street and was struck by a hit-and-run driver?

A nearby security camera caught the whole thing, and the video, which you can see at the end of this post - warning, it's painful to watch - shows the accident, and it shows people milling about on the sidewalk.

For what seems like eternity, the people on the sidewalk stand and stare. One guy is even dropped off by a passing car. He just walks by the body lying in the road. Eventually the bystanders, some of whom apparently saw the accident, walk up to the man. They point and gesture. They talk among themselves. Eventually a police car pulls up. Last I checked, the victim, 78-year-old Angel Torres, was in rough shape - paralyzed from the neck down, but still alive.

Now, while my first reaction to this story and this video was pure disgust and outrage, I had to check myself a little 'cause it turns out four of the bystanders called 911. But watching the whole thing, I just felt like they should have done more, like at least knelt down next to the guy to comfort him or to talk to him and keep him conscious till help arrived.

But I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't mention that I got angry about two weeks ago when Mrs. B called me to say she was running late for something 'cause when she'd walked out of our house to get in her car she'd seen a man lying prone on the sidewalk in front of a neighbor's home. She was concerned for him. So she and the neighbor approached the man to see if he was alive or sick...or just drunk or high. They also called 911. Don't know what was wrong with him. But ultimately the authorities came and took care of the guy and Mrs. B went on her way. I wasn't angry with her for her intentions. It was the right thing to do. But my suspicious nature and the horror stories we read and see of well-intentioned people getting harmed or killed by sneaky cons - in this case, maybe one playing possum - has me scared sometimes. And if something happened to my wife 'cause she was trying to be nice and got attacked, I would surely go to jail for some form of manslaughter.

And we can't have that happen, 'cause say it with me: I'm too pretty to go to jail.

While none of this is funny, the Connecticut story immediately made me think of the final two-part episode of Seinfeld, in which Elaine, George, Jerry, and Kramer, stood trial in a small New England town, for violating that town's Good Samaritan law after they stood by and laughed when a man on the sidewalk near them was robbed.

I laughed at that episode along with millions of other folks. I laughed even harder when that quartet of loveable (except Kramer, in retrospect) A-holes was convicted and sentenced to prison time.

But the serious question here is should there be a law forcing us to try to help when we see a person in apparent distress?

I know some states have Good Samaritan laws that make not rendering aid punishable. But people are rarely prosecuted under those laws. And when they are they're slapped with fines if convicted. Other states have Good Samaritan acts that protect medical professionals from being sued if they try to help and the victim suffers even more harm in the process of being helped.

But should there be a law across the board - something on the federal level maybe, that says you have to at least try, even if it just means calling 911?

My snap judgment says no, 'cause I don't think we need many, if any, new laws. And it shouldn't take a law for people to do the right thing. It should just take good home training. But again, look at how I reacted when my own wife tried to help a stranger. If there was a law requiring help where I live, I'd have had her violate it for my peace of mind.

What to do, what to do.

Anyway, if you have a strong stomach, here's that video of the accident in Connecticut:

Comments

[thirdworstpoetinthegalaxy]

Well, if the law doesn't get the passersby, then I hope their conscience will.

Honestly, though, I'm not sure how people live with themselves; oh, the excuses we make...

[The Sarcasticynic]

James, I said it with you, "I'm too pretty to go to jail," and my wife asked, "NOW what did you do?"

[Say It]

Do I think a good samaritan law be made federal? No, I think most people do go out of their way to help. But then there are things that happen that are to unbelievable or grotesque that make it hard to do the best/right thing.

Living here in CT, we got that a couple days ago when it happened. It seemed a lot of people were in shock. Witnesses probably stuck around to give their accounting as many witness should do. I can't speak for hand holding and comforting. If he's a typical New England man, he wouldn't need that. (local jest, couldn't help it, sorry)But I do hope that the driver who hit him and ran gets a severe punishment.

.

[claudia]

Hell, I've been at the scene of two accidents twice and most people stopped and helped, including myself. However, what sickens me the most about the video is that the car didn't even stop. I mean, really, the first car swerved to go around him and the second car nailed him and kept going?? You've got to be FFFFing kidding me!! If I were on the sidewalk, I'd be a bit iffy about going out into the middle of the road and getting hit myself!!

[insomniac]

how about an incident with a foot in both camps?
in sydney recently a guy knocked down a 90 year old woman early one morning, got out, carried her to the side of the road, and then drove off. she was assisted by another driver shortly thereafter. i think the guy surrendered to police later in the day.

[The CEO]

Last Saturday night, I almost choked to death on a piece of meat. I had turned blue. A nurse in the next booth got it to drop out of the windpipe into the stomach. It was far down, and it wasn't coming up. I was starting to black out.

For the kindness of a stranger, we almost lost the opportunity to meet. She wouldn't let me buy her dinner.

I will have my first emergency first aid course under my belt next month. I'll check the liability laws tomorrow.

[Steph]

I don't even know what to say about that other than if this behavior is becoming more typical then it's high time God pulled the plug on the human race.

Then again, the fact that this made the news means its still an anomaly. Thank God.

[Weetabix]

We don't need a federal Good Samaritan Law. We need a federal law mandating better people.... No, wait. That wouldn't work.

I suspect that most people are so conditioned to a life of spectatorship that these bystanders actually didn't know what to do more than just call for help and wait for it.

The "authorities" tend to tell us to stand by in case of emergency rather than taking the situation into our own hands. They're wrong.

ONE guy should have started barking orders:
"You! Stop oncoming traffic - wave your shirt!"

"You! He's not moving, so he probably has a spinal injury. Go hold his hand and reassure him. Ask him his name. Ask where he's going. Ask for numbers of people we can call for him. Keep him talking and calm."

"You! Find a pen and paper. Note the time this happened and take notes on what he tells the guy talking to him. Note whether he seems disoriented or lucid."

"You! Call 911 and stay on the line with them. Tell them the address we're at."

People would have followed one guy if he'd taken charge, I bet.

[James B.]

ThirdWorst, we can only hope. People have gotten good at suppressing pangs of conscience though.

Sarc, interesting. My mother had that same reation when I wrote that line.

Say It, I admire your faith in the relative goodness of mankind. I admit I don't fully share it, but the fact that your experience is that most folks would help, encourages me.

Claudia, good point about the bystanders not wanting to get run over. As for the hit-and-run driver, I wonder if he has a conscience. And if he does, is it eating him up or, as I suggested to ThirdWorst, has he managed to suppress it?

Insomniac, now there's hope for that guy. He did a terrible thing, but he was able to man up and turn himself in. I say there's hope for him to turn his life around...after he pays for it with some time behind bars.

Monty, I'm glad you're OK. And yours is a good cautionary tale to us all to learn first aid, if we don't already know it. And kudos to the stranger who helped you.

Steph, I hear ya. It doesn't bode well for us. But you are right, that its newsworthiness suggests it isn't a regular thing. Let's hope it stays that way.

Weetabix, fascinating point...and another blog post altogether. I agree with you. Problem is who wants to step up among a crowd of strangers and be a leader? I remember when my former employer sent me to NYC a few weeks after 9/11 to track down a firefighter who used to live in our town. He was the only survivor of his battalion after the terror attacks, and that's only 'cause he had the day off. Anyway, after the planes hit, he saw it on TV and told his wife he had to go. He threw his spare gear into his truck and sped into the city, getting as close to Ground Zero as he could. When he couldn't drive any closer, 'cause of the chaos and dust and smoke, he got out of the truck, put on his gear and started walking. After a bit he staggered into four or five other firefighters who'd done the same thing as him. They were gonna just keep wandering, but they collectively got the bright idea that one of them should take the leadership role. They did a quick head count and assigned one guy to be the "acting lieutenant." And he led them the rest of the way to the site and to their rescue efforts. So many aspects to that story. But that one of this random group of firefighters who didn't know one another picking a leader and bravely following him into the storm really moved me.

[Weetabix]

"Problem is who wants to step up among a crowd of strangers and be a leader?"

I've done it on a small scale in a vacuum of leadership. All it really takes is the realizations that a) things will go better with someone in charge and b) no one else is doing it.

Everyone should mentally prepare himself for this kind of thing.

What if there's a fire alarm and lots of smoke in an office building or a mall? If you've paid attention to where the exits are, you can grab a few guys and tell them to start directing traffic out.

Traffic accident? Get the bystanders to safety, make sure the driver/passengers aren't bleeding or about to blow up, make the scene safe, etc.

It's not hard. You just need a little preparation, a little confidence, and a big voice.