Premises Liability Duty to rescue requirements

[Guest]

Two private security guards are working at an apartment unit known for dangerous activity. Guard A is attacked by someone with a crow bar, sending him to the hospital. Security guard B rendered no help and stood by. No one else rendered aid. Any duty to rescue heren- including apartment owner and/or security guard company?

 

[army judge]

The law can't compel you, unless in certain professions, to assist, aid, or rescue others.

That said, before any legal duty can be breached, (assuming ne attaches) one must be present.

No one can determine what another person knew, so even if a legal duty had attached, did person X; know person Q required assistance?

This is a very sticky wicket you broach.

You'd have to show any if those mentioned knew person X had been attacked and required assistance, and the people mentioned owed X a duty to act. Simp,y put, they owed X no duty to act.

A security guard's main duty, as spelled out in your Cal Code is simply to "observe and report".


What are a security guard's ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES?

A security guard's role is to PROTECT people and property of his employer or contracted clients.

A security guard's responsibility BEFORE an incident/offense has occurred is PREVENTION.

A security guard's responsibility DURING or AFTER an incident/offense has occurred is to OBSERVE and REPORT.

http://www.security-guard-training.net/responsibilities-security-guard.htm

 

[laig53]

Actually, this was a case of Security Guard A was getting creamed while Security Guard B stood by and watched his partner get injured. So it would seem that knowledge of injury was clear. Security guards have more fatalities than law enforcement, interestingly, without the employment safeguards, etc. however. Sounds like nothing has changed for Kitty Genovese in nearly 50 years.

 

[army judge]

Actually, this was a case of Security Guard A was getting creamed while Security Guard B stood by and watched his partner get injured. So it would seem that knowledge of injury was clear. Security guards have more fatalities than law enforcement, interestingly, without the employment safeguards, etc. however. Sounds like nothing has changed for Kitty Genovese in nearly 50 years.

Security guards aren't police officers and have little, if any duty of care.


Besides, no one can know what B saw, and if B is smart, he saw NOTHING!!!!

 

[laig53]

I've looked into this a little more and see that duty of care only applies in certain cases. So even though people may stand around and take pictures, no one has a duty to intervene and thus no liability. Suppose this would apply to anywhere - Dodger game or apartment complex. Thank you for your response.

 

[army judge]

I've looked into this a little more and see that duty of care only applies in certain cases. So even though people may stand around and take pictures, no one has a duty to intervene and thus no liability. Suppose this would apply to anywhere - Dodger game or apartment complex. Thank you for your response.

Yes, I'm glad you understand the concept.

The state (government) couldn't enforce such a statute for a myriad of reasons.

The major one being, no one could know or ever ascertain what another knew, saw, observed, or believed.

As the great behaviorist, Maslow observed, survival is paramount in all humans.

It goes against human instinct to risk your life for others.

That's why military forces award bravery as going above and beyond, the willingness to risk (often sacrifice) your life to save another's life.

Glad you discovered it yourself, it makes it much easier to understand.

 

[laig53]

Behaviorist? Maslow? And all these years I thought he was the founder (along with Carl Rogers) of Humanistic Psychology. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Theory with self-actualization being at the top. He was, however, all about human motivation, but he lists safety needs as second from the bottom. I get what you're saying about survival instinct, though. You know B.F. Skinner and John B. Watson are the names generally recognized under the "great behaviorist" category, right? Maslow did study behavior, but it was mostly limited to primates.

Thanks again, though, for the legal clarifications.