BehindBlueI's
Grandmaster
- Oct 3, 2012
- 26,608
- 113
So if the kid commits suicide, we lock up the parents?
if the kid steals a car, and gets in a wreck that kills others, we lock up the parents?
How many people here took their parents cars on a small joy ride when they were underage and their parents weren't home?
Suicide: If the child is mentally incapable of making a decision and was provided a weapon, yes, we do. That's exactly the sort of thing Neglect causing death covers.
Steals a car: No. Not the same as either the hypothetical above or the case under discussion. Now if the parent taught the child to hotwire cars, gave them a USB drive that lets them steal Kias, then dropped them off at the dealership they would likely be charged as an accessory.
A 'joy ride' is a red herring and has no bearing on a case revolving around a mentally unstable child provided access to a weapon and denied mental health care, then sent out into the wider world. In your alternative version, civil liability would still be there, though, right? If some 13 year old hit you and totaled out your vehicle would you sue the 13 year old or his parents? Or would you shrug and say he was the only one behind the wheel so he'll have to pay damages?