Who's to Blame?

I read today that there was a police chase in Dinuba. There was a family of seven in a pickup driving through an intersection when the Dodge Neon that the police were chasing collided with it. Five children in the pickup and the three people in the Neon were killed. The parents from the truck are still in the hospital. Did you catch that?

My first thought when I started reading the story was, why are there seven people riding in a pickup? I don't think there are seat belts for seven people. And later my thoughts were confirmed. Nobody in either vehicle was wearing seat belts. And my initial instincts were confirmed as well. Family members are considering suing the Dinuba Police Department. What!? Now I have been living in this area long enough to know the first think people around here think about when the police are involved. Show me the money!

It doesn't matter if the people the police are involved with are committing a crime or not. There first thought is that they can sue the police department and city. If you truly care about correcting the problem, shouldn't you first be demanding and investigation into the actions of the officers? Is this about caring or just about the money?

I hate to say this so soon after a family lost all five of their children, but since none of the children were wearing seat belts, aren't the parents more responsible for their deaths than the police department? I think they are! I am not an expert on the law, but I believe that any deaths that occur during the commission of a crime are attributed to the person committing the crime. I am not a diehard supporter of police, but I think this one is obvious who is at fault. If, after an investigation it is learned that the police officers acted improperly in the chase, I will change my thoughts. But until that time, I blame the criminals in the Neon and the parents of the children. I guess we are still in an era when nobody wants to take responsibility for their own actions.

Here is a link to the story.