Pranks that take on a deadly element may be responsible for the wrongful death of an innocent victim. Such is the story in this case.
This is a case our law office read about and that involved a young sophomore who died as a result of a college prank gone awry. Often people relate best to actual case examples when learning more about how the law works when it comes to personal injuries and wrongful death lawsuits.
In this case, the 19-year-old man who died was living in a house with three other roommates. One night, while he was asleep, the other roomies got drunk and decided to play around with fireworks. Someone came up with the idea of sticking two Roman candles under the young man’s bedroom door with the idea that it would scare him awake and they could all have a good laugh when he came running out.
Roman candles are quite active when they get lit and often spew out at least 10 or more fireballs. With two of them under his door, there would have been roughly 20 fireballs blasting off into his room. The pranksters beat it outside and when they looked up at his room, they realized the whole thing was on fire by the glow in the window. They tried to save him but the intense heat drove them back.
The wrongful death lawsuit filed by the man’s parents stated that the four other boys who pulled this deadly prank were negligent and acting in a willful and wanton way and totally disregarded the safety of their son by starting a fire in his bedroom. The end result of the trial in this case was that the jury awarded the man’s family $700,000 for his wrongful death. The four all pled guilty to involuntary manslaughter; a move that netted them a plea bargain that gave them probation and six months in jail.
This was a totally devastating case for the dead young man’s family. They thought he was safe with his friends. Little did they know that when the alcohol prevailed and overrode common sense, that their son would lose his life. What the four boys did was negligent, reckless and ultimately fatal. The presence of negligence is required in a wrongful death case and that negligence must be the proximate or direct cause of the death. In this instance, it was clearly the fireworks placed under the door by the boys that led to another’s demise.
If you have been in a similar situation or involved in another scenario where you lost someone you loved because of the actions of another, it is best to seek an Arkansas injury lawyer right away. Wrongful death lawsuits are civil, not criminal, cases and they are also subject to the Statute of Limitations, meaning you only have a certain amount of time to file suit or lose your chance. Just remember that every state has different wrongful death provisions and you will need to speak to a skilled Arkansas injury lawyer to find out what applies in your case.
Michael G. Smith is anArkansas personal injury lawyer and Arkansas business dispute lawyer, practicing personal injury law and veteran’s benefits in Arkansas. Learn more by visiting Arkansaslawhelp.com
