Essay on A Good Samaritan Law is Never a Good Idea

A Good Samaritan Law is Never a Good Idea Less than one year ago, the largest television audience since the series finale of M*A *S*H tuned in to watch the last episode of Seinfeld As the nation watched, Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer said farewell with the arrest, trial, and conviction of violating a Good Samaritan law. While this made for a hilarious television show, this law itself seems to both contradict its essence as well as violate the right to freedom of choice of a citizen. The Good Samaritan law, which requires a bystander to provide aid to those who are in harm’s way if there is no apparent immediate danger to the bystander, encroaches upon the rights of a citizen. This law is an inexcusable violation of American†¦show more content†¦By requiring a person to act as opposed to merely limiting the actions, the law itself violates freedom of choice. Since the person himself is not intruding upon anyone’s rights, it is that person’s prerogative to not act, no matter how morally objectionable this act may be. In fact, the extreme case of someone not providing aid has indeed occurred. In Septem- ber in Las Vegas, a nineteen-year-old raped and murdered a seven-year-old girl in a casino bathroom while a friend stayed outside, knowing the other man was raping her. Since there is no Good Samaritan law in Nevada, the friend is now attending college a free man. Most people probably wonder how someone could hear a little girl’s screams and turn instead to the laughter and lights of the casino. They ask, if he could not bring himself to step in, how can he sleep at night now, knowing he caused the pain and death of an innocent child? He did not touch her or aid the rapist in any way. According to the letter of the law he can not be prosecuted for any criminal act. Despite the lack of any other law, there is still something inherently wrong with allowing the rape and death of a seven-year-old. So, even though his complacency led to an atrocious act, his crime can not be tried in any court on earth. On the floor of Congress is a bill which would require all states to passShow MoreRelatedEthical scrap book II final paper 1 1529 Words   |  7 Pagesabout a few things. The topics included good Samaritans, vigilantism, and civil disobedience. We will first address good Samaritans. Good Samaritans do things for other people out of the kindness of their hearts. They don’t do it out of obligation or out of guilt but rather because they feel the desire to help another person. The world would be much better off if it were full of good Samaritans. Some people argue the case of enforcing a Good Samaritan law. This would make it a requirement to helpRead MoreDon Marquis V.S. Judith Jarvis Thomson. 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