Current events minute
I feel like ranting.
Read this.
While I'm thrilled to know that another country's legal system has gotten as screwed up as ours (hellllooooooo, Canada!), here's a more direct way to stick it to drug dealers financially than a civil suit.
Don't buy drugs from 'em.
You didn't like being in a coma? Poor thing. You might not be able to have kids? Luckily for us, you came out of it so you could grace us with your self-indulgent whining. Even more luckily for us, you might not be able to have kids.
I'd like to see the druggie and the drug dealer fling themselves off a bridge. Jeebus.
posted by Green-Eyed Girl @ 1:09 PM
2 Comments:
I read the article. Actually, there's a point to be made.
She does indeed admit that it was a foolish mistake on her part, taking the drug. The family is not terribly concerned with getting rich on the lawsuit - just covering expenses.
It's the "why" of the lawsuit that's important.
I quote (the emphasis is mine):
"Bergen, who says she has been drug-free since the 2004 incident, told Canada AM on Wednesday that a lack of action within the criminal justice system left her and her family frustrated.
"'We found a different way to hold him responsible through the civil justice system,' she said from Saskatoon."
They tried seeking justice, not so much for their own losses, but to get the dealer off the street and in jail. That failed, so they had to pursue alternate means of getting justice.
Consider this: a lot of low-level dealers don't give a crap about the law or its enforcement - they're in and out like through a revolving door. But how many drug dealers would remain in business, knowing that there's now legal precedent for their "victims" to sue for damages? The first case might not be enough to do it, but the precedent sets up any number of other, similar cases to succeed. Dealers are in it for the money, period - losing that money in court is bad business.
And I'm guessing that Canada's civil court system is similar to America's in that the burden of proof is considerably lower. When the LA County prosecutor failed on criminal charges, the family of OJ Simpson's murdered wife took him on in civil court, and won.
Anyway, enough ranting. At least you're aware enough to read about such things and have an opinion.
Thanks for writing this.
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