As an injury lawyer here in Denver, I know the field of personal injury law is constantly evolving; I try to stay abreast of developments in Colorado and across the country. One of the more interesting current cases involves a deceased woman, whose estate is suing a four-year-old child.
According to news reports, an eighty-year-old woman was injured when the child struck her with her bicycle, while riding with training wheels along a New York City sidewalk. The woman, who suffered a broken hip, died three months later of causes that were determined to be unrelated. A Manhattan judge has decided to leave it up to the jury to make the decision. Citing personal injury cases from as far back as 1928, the judge allowed the lawsuit to go forward against the child, as well as another child who was involved and the parents of both children. For the record, the girl’s parents are not disputing the charges against them, just the ones against the child.
Bear in mind that this is not a criminal claim. In almost every state, children are not considered to have the mental maturity, called “mens rea”, to be held responsible for a crime until they are 18 years old. The legal question at the heart of this case is whether a child of that age has the mental capacity to be held responsible in civil court, as in this negligence claim. Basically, this lawsuit calls into question whether it is fair to permit a civil lawsuit against a child, especially such a young one.
The attorney hired by the girl’s parents argued that the child was not old enough to be held liable for negligence, pointing out that when the accident happened, the little girl was not engaged in an adult activity. She was simply riding her bicycle while under the supervision of her mother. While there is legal precedent for not holding children under the age of four responsible for negligence, the judge ruled that the girl was old enough to be sued because she was nine months past her fourth birthday. The child’s attorney also asserted that she should not be held liable because her mother was present. But the judge was not swayed by this argument either, stating: “A parent’s presence alone does not give a reasonable child carte blanche to engage in risky behavior.”
The judge wrote that he could not find any “lack of intelligence or maturity” or other reason that might prevent the child from understanding “the danger of riding a bicycle into an elderly woman.” A second legal issue underlying this case is whether the parents should be held responsible for their child’s conduct when one of them is present or in the vicinity when the child commits a civil wrong? Or must a parent be guilty of poor supervision before they can be considered responsible?
Personal injury law firms around the country will be watching this case, I am sure. As a personal injury lawyer, I think it will be interesting to see if a jury thinks that a four-year-old should be sued, as well as what role the quality of parental supervision plays in situations such as this one. If the jury decides it is fair for a child to be sued in civil court in this manner, what are the repercussions for the child? Most juvenile criminal records are sealed. Would a juvenile civil verdict be treated in the same manner? Or would this four-year-old have a weighty legal rendering following her from her K-12 years on? If so, how would it affect her ability to be admitted to schools, get a good job, etc.?
No related posts.
