8 men fined after friend drinks himself to death

[Ibby]

China court: Pals made man drink too much, must pay $25,000 to parents

BEIJING - A Chinese court has ordered a group of eight friends to pay compensation after a guest they made drink too much collapsed and died, state media said on Friday.

The 20-year-old man, Luo Xiaoming, drank too much brandy and spirits at a family banquet over Chinese New Year in the eastern province of Zhejiang, Xinhua news agency said.

“The court’s autopsy report showed that Luo, who was a company security guard, died of alcohol poisoning. Completely drunk, he vomited and then suffocated,” Xinhua said.

His parents sued the friends for 200,000 yuan ($25,140) compensation, “but the court considered the amount excessive, saying that adults must use common sense on festive occasions.”

The court ordered the friends to pay 35,192 yuan instead and found them to blame for making Luo drink too much, it said.

Copyright 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters.

Now, is that right? Should I have to suffer the consequences for what I convinced a friend to do?

[9th Engineer]

Wait, the story says that the men didn't have to pay the 25 grand, just 35,192 yuan (which works out to ~$4,393).

[breakingnews]

But they were still found "guilty" of making their friend drink too much. He means, because they persuaded their friend to do something, should they be responsible for the result?

Probably a textbook law school discussion. They did pressure him, but at 20 years old, he is considered old enough to make his own decisions. He had a choice whether or not to drink - if they had forced him at gunpoint (what's the term for that), it would have been a different story.

Also curious if this is considered manslaughter or murder (or not at all). If there had been negligence, like the friends saw he was deathly ill and did not take him to a hospital, wouldn't it count as some degree or murder or manslaughter?

[Tonchi]

It does not have to be any of the above. This is CHINA. They write their own laws, or the Communist Party does. Don't expect it to have all that much resemblance to our legal code. Not everybody thinks fairness and honesty is the way to go. If this had happened in a Muslim country, they would have SHOT all of the men instead, you know.

[Ibby]

But my question wasn't the legality, it was the morality. Did they deserve the fine? Four thousand bucks is a lotta money, especially when your daily paycheck is measurable on one hand.

[Tonchi]

Well, how moral was it for the Chinese government to throw 9 million people out of their homes and farmlands to build that dam? Laws are unfortunately pegged to the sense of morality of whoever is in charge. And divided 8 ways it might have looked more reasonable to the municipal authorities.

[breakingnews]

I think he's saying, forget laws, forget in what country this is happening. Whose fault is it?

I'm having a tough time deciding. Ultimately, the guy who died, it was his choice to drink in the first place. He put himself in that situation. But if his 8 friends ganged up on him while he was drunk, they are at fault for pressuring him while he was impaired.

I dunno.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Is 20 a legal drinking age there? If the 8 were older relatives getting an inexperienced young guy plastered, perhaps for the first time, they have an obligation to guide him.Evidently they were also three sheets to the wind, not to notice he was suffocating.

While he is ultimately responsible for his actions, they also have a responsibility to watch out for someone they are teaching the ways of the world.

[Trilby]

Sorta sounds like hazing to me.

[wolf]

Uh, folks. Drinking didn't kill him ... aspirating his vomitus did. Even if the drunk relatives positioned him properly, he could have rolled on his back.

Nothing in the article says anything about his alcohol level. It would be interesting to know his actual level of impairment.

Also, the responsible party (in the way that U.S. law reasons such things) would be whoever served him alcohol, not the friends or relatives who took it upon themselves to chant "chug, chug, chug."

In the US you can sue the bar that sells you too many drinks if you go out and kill yourself driving after drinking them... so the US law is pretty clear on this kinda' BS.
Personally, I think it is stupid. You are an adult, your actions are your own.

[tw]

Originally Posted by rkzenrage

In the US you can sue the bar that sells you too many drinks if you go out and kill yourself driving after drinking them... so the US law is pretty clear on this kinda' BS.

An innocent third party killed by the drunk can sue the bar. Big difference. A bar that continues serving one so obviously drunk is negligent - participated in killing other third parties. The drunk does not sue. The drunk is not a victim.

How is the bar supposed to know that they are driving? Mind reading? Chrystal ball? Tarot? Trust them to tell the truth?
The ABC that sells them "too much" should be in the same boat then.

[tw]

Originally Posted by rkzenrage

How is the bar supposed to know that they are driving? Mind reading? Chrystal ball? Tarot? Trust them to tell the truth?
The ABC that sells them "too much" should be in the same boat then.

A man can be drunk and not appear to be drunk. Prove that in court and the bar is not guilty. But a bar may not serve an obviously intoxicated person whether a drunk is driving or not. If the person does anything fatal to others, driving or not, then the bar that served an obviously intoxicated person is at fault. The party that can sue is the victim. In the China case, who is the victim?

Exactly, or the person can be drunk before they get to the bar... in all cases, the logic of blaming the bar or the friends is faulty.