Taipei Times: Disabled Access at Fault, not Student

[Dioneae muscipula]

On August 28, 2005, Taipei Times addressed a controversial court ruling
in Taiwan in its editorial, on a student's liability in killing his
friend suffering from osteogenesis imperfecta in an accident. Read the
whole article in
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2005/08/28/2003269491

An outline of the article:
* The Taipei High Court held both Jing-Wen High School
and a high school student surnamed Chen liable for
negligence in the death of a student. Chen was seen
as the good Samaritan in volunteering to help Yen
Hsu-Nan, a patient of osteogenesis imperfecta, by
carrying Yen on his back downstairs to attend physical
education classes. Unfortunately Chen slipped on the
wet staircase and dropped Yen on a rainy day and
caused Yen's fatal injury. Now Chen's "good heart"
won him a liability of NT$3 million in Yen's death.
* It is also going too far to conclude that people
acting out of kindness can never be considered legally
negligent or at fault.
* The saddest thing about the ruling is the chilling
effect it may have on people's sympathy the next time
they contemplate doing a good deed.
* If any good can come of this case, it is the
unprecedented public attention that is now focused on
the dire need for handicapped access and improved public
facilities in Taiwan.