From Above the Law, this story from the Salt Lake Tribune about the homicide prosecution of a Candice Collard for the death of 14 year old Jess “Micade” Horrocks, who died of alcohol poisoning:

On April 12, Horrocks and some other teenagers were drinking hard liquor in a Vernal parking lot, said Uintah County Deputy Attorney Greg Lamb. Horrocks chugged so much booze he became unresponsive and someone called Collard, 24, for help, Lamb said. 

Lamb said people had to lift Horrocks into a car. But instead of taking Horrocks to a hospital or to his parents, Lamb said, Collard drove him to her home in Jensen, 13 miles away. 

Another adult found Horrocks to be unresponsive in the house at about midnight, Lamb said, and the adult called 911. The next day, Horrocks was ruled to be brain dead, disconnected from life support and died.

According to the prosecution, who admittedly have taken a “novel approach” to this case, Collard’s “inaction” was the cause of Horrocks’ death.

I’m not suggesting that Collard handled the situation well, but there was nothing about her effort that demonstrated anything beyond simple negligence.  For her efforts, she now faces homicide charges.  This is the latest in the trend toward the compulsion to create a crime whenever a bad outcome occurs. 

The death of Horrocks, by any measure, is a tragedy.  No 14 years old should die, and especially not this way.  But a tragic death doesn’t mean that someone has to pay.  Tragedy can happen without any crime being committed.  Whether there is civil liability is another matter, but Collard is facing 15 years for having tried to help, even if her choice was poor.

The charge seems especially harsh given that Utah has a criminal statute for failure to render aid. Uintah [sic] County Deputy Attorney Greg Lamb said that the homicide charge was warranted because Collard “failed miserably in several areas that could have prevented [Horrocks’s] death.”

So the lesson here is to refuse to help, lest a bad decision puts someone at risk of homicide?  That’s certainly not going to provide an incentive to do the right thing.   Most jurisdictions have “good samaritan” laws designed to encourage people to help, and protecting them from liability for their decisions. 

No doubt this tragic story brought cries from the public that someone’s head must roll when a 14 year old dies.  And obviously the Utah County prosecutor heard the pleas.  It would be nice to think that a judge will toss this case as quickly as possible, but it would take an awfully secure judge to do so.