Woman dies after being in water drinking contest (hope they get sued) - Page 3

Elise · January 17th, 2007, 06:55 PM

I asked my boyfriends dad about od'ing on water (he's a doctor) and he said a person has to drink a LOT of water and its very rare that something like this happens.
I don't think the radio station should be sued. She chose to drink that water. Nobody forced her.

Mira · January 17th, 2007, 06:57 PM

The radio station should have consulted their legal department and issued a prominent disclaimer.

Sacramento is close to Chico. Everybody in the area knew about the water poisoning that boy suffered. This is tacky, tacky radio.

There should be a suit, the family should prevail, and her kids need a trust fund. Simple as that.

Elise · January 17th, 2007, 07:01 PM

Well if everyone in the area knew about that boy who died, is it not reasonable to assume this woman probably had and chose to ignore the risks?

Mira · January 17th, 2007, 07:12 PM

It is much more likely that a radio station would be aware of that news.

A single, struggling mom trying to win a video console for her kids is far more likely to miss that story due to being busy taking care of kids and just generally surviving her circumstances.

Elise · January 17th, 2007, 07:19 PM

Except she's not a "single, struggling mom." She is married.

Mira · January 17th, 2007, 07:23 PM

well I still think the radio station has a degree of liability and that it's likely she wasn't aware of the news item. A lot of people live in a vacuum and simply tune out the news - the radio station may use the fact that it probably aired the actual story as a defense. The fact is, however, people tune out news all the time - often with realizing it.

Elise · January 17th, 2007, 07:25 PM

I just don't think the radio station is at fault. She chose to drink the water. Nobody forced her to do so. She drank 2 gallons of water for what? A video game system? It was a stupid decision & honestly, I don't think the radio station is at all liable for this.

Mira · January 17th, 2007, 07:28 PM

I didn't say the radio station was at fault. In law, there is something called contributory negligence. The radio station has a degree of liability. Not fault.

Elise · January 17th, 2007, 07:33 PM

Many people take "liable" & "at fault" to be virtually the same thing so, let me clarify: I don't think the radio station is liable for this woman's death. At all. I don't think they were negligent. She's a grown woman who chose to drink the water. Nobody forced her to do so.

AliceInWonderland · January 17th, 2007, 07:35 PM

yeah I've heard of this happening to ppl on drugs who are trying to stay hydrated; the thing that kills you i guess is the dillution of sodium levels in the brain. sad...

Mira · January 17th, 2007, 07:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elise

I don't think they were negligent. She's a grown woman who chose to drink the water. Nobody forced her to do so.

I understood you perfectly well the first time. You don't need to repeat it. My experience is (and I worked in law for over 25 years), the radio station will have a degree of liability. How much, we cannot know yet. It will take years, if the family even brings suit.

Elise · January 17th, 2007, 07:40 PM

Well they may have a degree of liability, that may be the law, but in my personal opinion (which I was speaking from, not from a viewpoint of how the law works), they shouldn't. I think it's a sad accident & it should be left at that.

However, with our lawsuit happy society, I would not be shocked at all if they sued.

Mira · January 17th, 2007, 09:24 PM

That was a crass and low stunt the station pulled, within 12-18 months of the water intoxication death in Chico. The fact that the contestants signed a release will have some bearing on the case, but it won't completely excuse the fact that the radio station made the decsion to run the contest. Just because a release was signed does not mean the radio station is excused from some degree of liability.

It's just crass and low to say "hey the idiots signed a release knowing the dangers, we don't give a rat's ass what happens to them, we're just going to have fun and get ratings off of them!"

I suspect this is not the last we've heard about this case. The FCC will no doubt have to weigh in on it at some point.

From the San Jose Mercury News:
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercu...s/16483457.htm

"On Wednesday, attorneys for the Strange family said they planned to file a wrongful death lawsuit against the radio station on behalf of her husband and three children. Details of the suit were to be announced Thursday."

pacific breeze · January 17th, 2007, 10:23 PM

Surely to God people bear some responsibility for their actions, especially adults. I've already weighed in on the radio station, but I do think adults have to step up to the plate. Not everything is someone else's fault -- if someone told that woman to eat until she couldn't eat any more, would she have done that too?

Reminds of the Depression when dance 'til you drop contests were common. Now those people were truly desperate. They weren't trying to win some stupid electronic gadget they didn't need anyway.

Elise · January 17th, 2007, 10:30 PM

^^Exactly. Our society is completely empty of personal responsibility. Why take responsibility for your own actions (or that of your family members) when you can blame it on someone else & possibly take money away from the situation??