Would I be a bad person?
Would you hate me if it was your kid and why even though it wasn't my fault?...
2006-10-19 02:10:45 · 49 answers · asked by abluebobcat 4 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
No, you wouldn't be a bad person. Yes, you'd be despised by the parents in all likelihood, even though you weren't at fault. And no, you wouldn't be legally responsible, even though you didn't ask that question.
2006-10-19 02:13:00 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
If it wasn't your fault then you are not a bad person but a victim of unfortunate circumstances. Live and learn and have a look at yourself is there any way you can make a situation like this less likely to happen again. ie where you driving a 4x4 or a small hatchback.
Of course the parents would hate you, there seven year old has died and there is nothing you can do about it.
what I said doesn't mean you should forget the incident but try not to beat yourself up about it
2006-10-19 02:18:39 · answer #2 · answered by ryanlc64 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I guess it would depend if you were speeding, watching what you were doing, if you saw kids playing and didn't slow down, etc ...
Once I was driving about 15 miles an hour and a kid riding a "big wheel" http://www.playthingspast.com/em701.html came out from between two parked cars. He was so low to the ground (as you can see from the photo) that he wasn't visible until he was in the road directly in front of me. I slammed on the brakes and missed him by a couple of inches, literally.
I was driving way under the speed limit (15 mph in a 25 mph zone), which is the only reason that kid is still alive today.
If it was something that really couldn't have been avoided, yes, I would forgive you.
2006-10-19 04:47:42 · answer #3 · answered by BoomChikkaBoom 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
You would have a scar for life. It's something you relive everyday. The what if's will shake you to the core. Nine times out of 10 a driver that hits a child is either driving to fast, not paying attention to their surroundings or has their head up their backside. As a driver you are always suppose to expect the unexpected & be able to react. Most industries now say all accidents are avoidable & preventable.
You are more than likely not a bad person. It really doesn't matter where you live. If you hit a pedestrian you are at fault no matter what.
2006-10-19 02:34:08 · answer #4 · answered by oilfieldinsultant 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
If you weren't speeding, your car was in good shape, you weren't drunk or on drugs, weren't on a cell phone or distracted by changing the radio station, or eating a burger, or contributing to the accident in any way--
If the girl was between two cars or behind a hedge and ran right under your wheels without warning of any kind and there are witnesses...
If the police investigation showed all of these things to be true, the you would most likely never be charged with any crime.
Accidents can happen to any person, and have nothing to do with your status of being "good" or "bad",
Whether or not I could personally forgive you is a question I hope I never have to answer in real life. Logically, I must forgive you-- you are a victim in this case as well. Personally, I know how difficult it would be offer God's love to the person involved with the end of my child's life.
2006-10-19 02:26:12 · answer #5 · answered by chocolahoma 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It depends on how fast you were going at the time. If your were on a major road with a speed limit of 30mph and you were travelling at 40mph, then it would be your fault. If all the school kids were coming out of school and there were lots milling around, but you continued to drive at 30mph, then it would still be your fault - you should slow down to anticipate the erratic behaviour of children.
If you were on a housing estate I think it would still be your fault unless you were travelling at below 20mph to anticipate any running kids.
Does this make you a bad person, no, unless you continue to drive without any regard to other road users or pedestrians.
If it was my kid, I would probably still hate you though.
For drivers, there is a very high standard in the duty of care for pedestrians, especially children.
2006-10-19 02:35:35 · answer #6 · answered by fizz 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
This nearly happened to me. I was driving under the speed limit down a major road (4 lanes) in Chicago during a snowstorm. When, I happened to notice a group of people leaving church on the far side of the road. There was a family standing there IGNORING THEIR LITTLE GIRL. For whatever reason, she decided to suddenly dash across the 4 lanes of busy traffic, directly into the path of my vehicle. I applied the breaks AND NOTHING HAPPENED. Because of the snow, my tires had now traction whatsoever and I slid forward with almost no decrease in my speed. The girl, barely, stepped out of the path of my vehicle and onto the sidewalk on the the far end just as I passed her. I stopped within a short distance and looked back. Her parents still did not notice her missing.
I have never forgiven them for this. It's one of the few times in my life that I feel true hatred for people. I say hatred because the roots of hatred for another are self loathing. Had I hit that child, I would never have been able to forgive myself.
And the truth of the matter is I SHOULD have hit her. There is no way she should have made it to the other side. She didn't have enough time.
But, she did.
2006-10-19 02:24:49 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
if you were not driving over the limit and as you say she walked out in front of you and there was nothing you could do i wouldnt blame you but there was an asylum seeker recently who had no licence no insurance no tax he got 8 weeks for this crime maybe if that man wasnt driving on the road the kid may have got run over by someone else doubt it you dont make that mistake very often even a child but still this isnt the point why are we bothering to get a licence insurance paying tax what is the point if any nutter can get on the road kill someone and get 8 weeks theres definately something wrong with this country im starting to feel there doing this on purpose to stur up public opinion so we eventually give up our human rights and liberty this hasnt just happened once either scary world we are living in.
2006-10-19 04:06:10 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
This happened in Toronto about a month ago... A little girl was walking down the street with her parent and saw something across the street that she wanted to go see, and just let go of her parent's hand and darted into the street and was hit by a car. She died. The parent didn't blame the guy who hit her. He wasn't drunk, wasn't swerving onto the sidewalk or anything...she just ran in front of him and he didn't have time for his reflexes to make him stop the car.
I think though, that if something like that happened to you, you'd be blaming yourself so much that the blame of the parent wouldn't be an issue. The guy who hit the little girl sat on the side of the road with his head in his hands and was so very traumatized by what had happened he could barely speak.
2006-10-19 02:17:18 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Depends how fast you were driving, the reason there are speed restrictions in built up areas is because children DO sometimes run out without looking.
If you are driving at 20 mph you should be able to see her in time to stop.
If you drive at 30pmh you will probably hit her but she will have cuts and bruises, maybe a broken arm.
Drive at over 30mph, you will definitely not be able to stop in time and will probably kill her.
The question is not what the parents would think, but would you be able to live with yourself if you had done this?
2006-10-19 02:19:05 · answer #10 · answered by Jude 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋