Suspect in police chase likely to face charges for deaths in news copter collision

Threatening criminal charges here is just a reaction to being pissed off that innocent people died, but there's no way the fugitive can legally be held accountable for those deaths. Technically he may have been the catalyst of the events, but it's not his fault that the pilots didn't organise their air traffic properly. He didn't directly influence them in any way.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Originally Posted by 343 Guilty Spark

My condolances, in any case. Now I'm wondering which pilot was the cause of the crash.

Quote:

In the moments before the crash, the pilot from KNXV-TV (Channel 15), Craig Smith, was on the radio with the pilot from KTVK-TV (Channel 3).

The inherent danger and periodic confusion of covering a police chase was clear even though you could only hear one side of the radio transmission.

Pilot Craig Smith is heard asking his photographer and talking to the pilot of Channel 3.

"Where's 3?"

"How far? Oh, jeez."

"3, I'm right over you. 15 on top of you."

"I'm over the top of you."

Basically, I don't think a single pilot was at fault. It must be fucking stressful and confusing for three or more helicopters to fly in close proximity while covering a chase, so frankly it's impressive that such tragedies don't occur more often.

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Originally Posted by BlueMikey

In a way, it is similar to if a police car hit another civilian's car during the chase and the civilian died. The victim would have had no direct connection to the guy being chased, and in that sense, I think they could charge them.

Uhhhh, what? The driver of the police car would be 100% liable in this case, no question about it. Being in pursuit does not give police officers a licence to mow down civilians and shift the blame on the fugitive. Or am I mistunderstanding what you said?

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

If that's true, it's beyond all logic. The idea that you can legally get charged for a crime that someone else commits... Man that's fucked up.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

From your first paragraph it seems that you think he cannot be charged as the events were out of his reasonable control, but in the second paragraph you talk about him not being charged because of a potential media backlash. I'm confused here, what exactly do you think should happen? Should he be charged with those deaths or not?

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by mortis

Paris Hilton and Bill Gates were seen running off to a hotel together

Well, that's not illegal, so it wouldn't exactly be the same situation, you know?

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Bigblah

From the police's perspective it wouldn't be. But it can be argued that these situations are equivalent to the press; they're both titillating scoops. Reporters don't have a pressing legal duty, so to speak, to chase after suspects.

Well, they don't have a legal duty, but I assume that sometimes press helicopters do assist the police with information during a chase, as the police likely don't have the resources to send out chopper fleets for every little thing, but the press can apparently do that because toot-toot ratings. At any rate though, it certainly shouldn't free pilots from the responsibility to look where they're flying.

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