Dragon2115
Key Veteran
Location: New England
| budc,
In civil lawsuits it's a jury that decides the case, not the judge. And jury selection is a science all to itself. That's what makes them so risky sometimes and why a lot of times they are settled out of court even though common sense would say there is no case. The other trouble is that the devil is in the details. In the event of an accident with a model heli it could be simple pilot error where they dumb thumbed it, in which case the argument put forward would be did the pilot exercise adaquate caution or not. It could also be component failure. The argument here would be did the owner adaquately maintain the heli so as the failure could have resonably been prevented. Most likely the component manufacturer would be named in the suit as well. (One reason for the higher prices of stuff, to cover the litigation btw.) Now the sticky part, it doesn't matter what's right or wrong or if the pilot was in the right or not. that's pretty much secondary. What matters is which lawyer can convince the jury they're right. There have been many cases where the defendant was totally in the right but lost the case simply because the jury felt sorry for the plaintif. Case in point, the McDonalds' coffee. The reason McDonalds lost was because their coffee was found to be 15 degrees hotter than anybody elses thus increasing the risk of burns should it be spilled. That is what convinced the jury to side with the plaintif. I'm not saying any of this is right, in fact I'd argue for serious Tort Law reform, but it is how the system currently works. I feel if you're dumb enough to put hot coffee between your legs while driving you've got nobody but yourself to blame if you get burned, regardless of how hot it is.
Stet,
You're abosolutely right that if the AMA rules are followed there should be very few accidents, other than for a component failure that is beyond our control.
You also show excellent foresight with having a documentation trail that shows the club has done the very best it can to ensure safety. That documentation can be the difference between winning and losing a lawsuit, and the field, for a club.
In the case of this accident at Whittier Narrows I just hope that the person hit didn't get hurt too badly, they recover quickly, and that it ends there. |
that place doesnt even sound cool.. sounds like a bloodbath waiting to happen. that is horrible.
jim
) but Idon't think I have ever heard of anyone getting chopped.In all respects there seems to many plank accidents from showing off to crowds.Maybe now AMA will step in and give you guys an extra field or two.I wonder under what situation the heli flyer didn't notice that the guy was standing in the field flying his plane.I have the problem at my little "private" field that deer walk out to see what the noise is but I am able to keep away from them.I hope this guy recovers well because I know from experience it will NOT be a full recovery.
