Personal Injury and Violence

There is a pair of Rhode Island Supreme Court cases that underscore the difficult legal issues that arise in Rhode Island personal injury claims involving gun violence.
In Ouch v. Khea, 963 A. 2d 630 (R.I. 2009), a car full of people were ambushed by gunfire that injured one passenger and killed another. The lawyer unsuccessfully tried to hold the ambushed vehicle’s driver liable for his passengers’ gunshot wounds. The court rejected this argument, stating that an automobile operator’s duty to drive safely does not include protecting passengers from a street gang’s intentional criminal acts. Since the shooting was not an expected consequence of driving a car and gunshot wounds are not usually related to driving, the driver was not negligent and therefore not liable for the gunshot injuries of his passengers.

In Curtin v. Lataille, 527 A. 2d 1130 (R.I. 1987), an automobile passenger lost an eye when a gang member shot the passenger with a pellet gun. The lawyer unsuccessfully tried to hold an entire gang liable for his client’s injuries. Using R.I. Gen. Laws §10-6, the personal injury attorney argued the injury caused by one member of the gang was part of a “joint enterprise” or “common purpose” of fighting other gangs. While the court did hold that injuries inflicted during a gang fight could impose liability on any fight participant, the lack of any actual group activity at the time of the shooting did not support making all gang members liable for any actions of any single member.

Violent gang-type shootings involve challenging issues such as legal causation. In both cases, the plaintiffs’ RI personal injury lawyer had difficulty establishing negligence. Negligence requires the defendant owe a legal duty to the injured party, a breach of this duty, a causal relationship between the breach of duty and resulting injury, and actual loss or damage due to the injury. Courts consider the relevant facts of each case, including the likelihood someone would be injured by the defendant’s behavior and issues of public policy.

Additionally, intentional acts such as gun violence create issues of insurance coverage. That is, the subject auto insurance policy or policies typically exclude providing coverage for intentional acts.

Without question, Rhode Island car accidents or other types of personal injury resulting from gun violence are tragic. In a brief moment of time, these events can cause lifetime injuries. Contacting a top rated lawyer is an important first step in evaluating the issues set forth in the above RI Supreme Court law cases.