If it's okay to speed to get to the hospital

[garn9173]

If you need to speed to get to Mass, leave a few minutes earlier. Last week there was a story on the local Des Moines news of a man who was caught speeding on the urban interstate by one of those speed cameras who was in the process of taking his wife to the hospital who was in labor.

He fought the ticket and won.

 

[stringbeanduck]

I believe there is a difference, morally, between speeding and reckless driving. Reckless driving means, putting yourself and other in danger by the nature of your driving. Speeding is just going over the speed limit. To put it another way: reckless driving can include speeding sometimes, but not all speeding is reckless driving. Simply going a unit of speed over the speed limit is speeding, but it certainly isn’t reckless driving.

Here’s some food for thought. Consider driving in a snow storm where the roads are beginning to hold accumulations. You go 54mph in a 55mph zone along a stretch of road that has some moderate curves and hills. Would that be morally licit?

My vote: No.

 

[Godfollower]

If you need to speed to get to Mass, leave a few minutes earlier. Last week there was a story on the local Des Moines news of a man who was caught speeding on the urban interstate by one of those speed cameras who was in the process of taking his wife to the hospital who was in labor.

He fought the ticket and won.

But he shouldn’t win (assuming the ticket to be accurate, etc.). The last person I want on the roads with me is a frantic husband speeding to the hospital while his wife screams with labor pains.

The nearest ambulance is what? Five minutes away? And they have the tools necessary to keep your wife alive, deliver the baby if it’s coming right now, and get wife and baby to the hospital – all while using lights and sirens to get there safely.

AND they’re being driven by a person who isn’t worried sick that his wife’s having a baby right now, so he’s being careful as he exceeds the speed limit and goes through stop signs and red lights.

Everyone’s always so compassionate for the frantic husband speeding 100 mph in the rain at night and so on to take his wife to the hospital because she’s in labor. I wonder how those people would feel if they were hit by such a husband on the way to the hospital? Would they say it was okay, and don’t worry about their lost wages (or lost limbs or lost lives)?

Call 911. That’s what it’s there for.

 

[Curious_Seed]

There are no reasons whatsoever that can justify speeding to a Church.
Not being late for a baptism, wedding, funeral, or Mass.
Not even for the example given by you. Nothing justifies endangering innocent lives by speeding.

There are no reasons whatsoever that can justify speeding to a Church.

Yes, I get that from you. What I don’t have are your reasons supporting your view.

Your last statement is interesting. Nothing justifies endangering innocent lives by speeding. We are not discussing what conditions justify endangering innocent lives, by speeding, or, does all speeding endanger innocent lives. No, we are asking if it is ok to speed to church. Changing the nature of the question is only misleading.

If you say, for yourself, speeding to church is never justified, then no reasons are required.

But, if you say, for everyone, at all times and conditions, speeding to church is never justified, reasons are required: otherwise, your opinion is no more than an edict.

 

[Nate13]

But he shouldn’t win (assuming the ticket to be accurate, etc.). The last person I want on the roads with me is a frantic husband speeding to the hospital while his wife screams with labor pains.

The nearest ambulance is what? Five minutes away? And they have the tools necessary to keep your wife alive, deliver the baby if it’s coming right now, and get wife and baby to the hospital – all while using lights and sirens to get there safely.

AND they’re being driven by a person who isn’t worried sick that his wife’s having a baby right now, so he’s being careful as he exceeds the speed limit and goes through stop signs and red lights.

Everyone’s always so compassionate for the frantic husband speeding 100 mph in the rain at night and so on to take his wife to the hospital because she’s in labor. I wonder how those people would feel if they were hit by such a husband on the way to the hospital? Would they say it was okay, and don’t worry about their lost wages (or lost limbs or lost lives)?

Call 911. That’s what it’s there for.

Obviously that is not good either. I think we all know there are times where someone could speed safely though. Anyone who decides it is smart to drive 100mph in the rain at night is not thinking of their wife’s safety though let alone anyone else’s. I think the only just reason to speed would be if calling 911 was not an option and they wouldn’t arrive soon enough. However even then, you have to avoid the situation you have described above where you might put your own life and others in more immediate danger than the danger you are rushing to avoid.

 

[thistle]

There are no reasons whatsoever that can justify speeding to a Church.

Yes, I get that from you. What I don’t have are your reasons supporting your view.

Your last statement is interesting. Nothing justifies endangering innocent lives by speeding. We are not discussing what conditions justify endangering innocent lives, by speeding, or, does all speeding endanger innocent lives. No, we are asking if it is ok to speed to church. Changing the nature of the question is only misleading.

If you say, for yourself, speeding to church is never justified, then no reasons are required.

But, if you say, for everyone, at all times and conditions, speeding to church is never justified, reasons are required: otherwise, your opinion is no more than an edict.

Reasons?
The reasons are simple. There are only two.

1. Its illegal.
2. Speeding endangers innocent lives. There is no justification to endanger innocent life.

Your hypothetical example of why a person might want to speed to Church is not a good one. You do not endanger innocent life to attend a funeral, even if it is a family member and you have just found out. Neither do you endanger innocent lives to attend a baptism, or wedding, or Mass.

Please give me a good reason why its okay to endanger innocent lives by speeding to a Church!

 

[wjp984]

What if you are pulled over and get a ticket? Then not only will you be late to mass, you will be very late with a big fine to go with it.

And for some reason, the cops always seem to be out on Sunday mornings in my area so it’s not really a good time to speed.

 

[AHapka]

Its not legal to speed to a hospital even for an emergency although you would likely be cut some slack in such circumstances if you didn’t cause any accidents on the way…

As a former deputy sheriff, I can assure you that’s not true (at least in my state of Wisconsin).

It’s a high bar of defense, but one could claim necessity. “939.47 Necessity. Pressure of natural physical forces which causes the actor reasonably to believe that his or her act is the only means of preventing imminent public disaster, or imminent death or great bodily harm to the actor or another and which causes him or her so to act, is a defense to a prosecution for any crime based on that act”

Given a hypothetical where an ambulance is not available, and you speed to get someone in danger of death to a hospital, you would have a valid legal defense.

 

[AHapka]

Everyone’s always so compassionate for the frantic husband speeding 100 mph in the rain at night and

That brings in the question of degree.

Let’s assume a 55mph speed limit. There’s a big difference between going 65mph and 100 mph. Everyone knows that.

Simply put, there are many variables that need to be taken into consideration to make an informed decision.

 

[thistle]

As a former deputy sheriff, I can assure you that’s not true (at least in my state of Wisconsin).

It’s a high bar of defense, but one could claim necessity. “939.47 Necessity. Pressure of natural physical forces which causes the actor reasonably to believe that his or her act is the only means of preventing imminent public disaster, or imminent death or great bodily harm to the actor or another and which causes him or her so to act, is a defense to a prosecution for any crime based on that act”

Given a hypothetical where an ambulance is not available, and you speed to get someone in danger of death to a hospital, you would have a valid legal defense.

Fair enough but I doubt the necessity argument would apply to a person speeding to Church to attend a funeral, baptism, wedding or Mass.

 

[Godfollower]

As a former deputy sheriff, I can assure you that’s not true (at least in my state of Wisconsin).

It’s a high bar of defense, but one could claim necessity. “939.47 Necessity. Pressure of natural physical forces which causes the actor reasonably to believe that his or her act is the only means of preventing imminent public disaster, or imminent death or great bodily harm to the actor or another and which causes him or her so to act, is a defense to a prosecution for any crime based on that act”

Given a hypothetical where an ambulance is not available, and you speed to get someone in danger of death to a hospital, you would have a valid legal defense.

Sure. “Where an ambulance is not available.” How many of these chumps call 911 first? The typical scenario goes straight from “Honey, I think it’s time” to speeding down the road – 100 mph is not unusual in these news reports – to get to the hospital.

If he kills a pedestrian or other driver, it’s manslaughter. Now his kid will grow up without a dad.

Or . . . .

Call 911, and the ambulance will be there in minutes.

 

[Godfollower]

That brings in the question of degree.

Let’s assume a 55mph speed limit. There’s a big difference between going 65mph and 100 mph. Everyone knows that.

Simply put, there are many variables that need to be taken into consideration to make an informed decision.

Sure. But these guys are never doing 10 over the limit. I see news reports all the time about men driving 100+ mph to get to the hospital – sometimes while talking on the cell phone. And then, invariably, they have the chutzpah to challenge the ticket.

Every EMT in the country knows how to deliver a baby; it’s part of the training. And if something goes wrong, they have lots of flashy lights and obnoxious sirens to warn other drivers out of the way. They’re only minutes away.

Hubby had nine months to learn what’s involved in the birthing process. And his sole contribution was to endanger everyone around – including himself, his wife, and his about-to-be-born child – by piling on the gasoline? That’s irresponsibility at its worst.

Remember, the whole point of having ambulances is not to get the hospital quickly; it’s to bring the medical training and equipment to the place of emergency (then stabilize the patient and get to the hospital). If the ambulance is five minutes away and the hospital is ten minutes away, the ambulance is better. They’ll stabilize the patient and then get to the hospital, whereas driving yourself takes longer.