[Demarcus ware]

I found this story on a British newspaper website. This story from Texas had a happy ending, but it raises some interesting issues about when it is acceptable to take the law into one's own hands. Obviously, the hospital staff was wrong to insist on pulling the plug on this patient and the father was wrong to threaten the hospital staff and police with a gun, but the father's actions probably saved his son's life.

If the son had not recovered after the standoff, the father would have undoubtedly received a stiff sentence for his crime, but his motive and his actions would have been the same. My head tells me that the punishment should be the same, regardless of the outcome, but the hospital would probably not have been held criminally liable for causing the death of the son by prematurely declaring him brain dead.

How many people die each year because of medical malpractice each year compared to deaths by gun crimes?

Just a quick google search and not really getting too deep into it. It appears over 200,000 from medical malpractice, where as 30,000 die from guns. Some of those malpractice deaths come from the wrong medicine being given, and some from unnecessary surgeries. That is huge, i did not know that many died from malpractice. Yikes. Also, like you, i want too say his punishment should be the same regardless, but if they had killed his son, would anyone face charges for it? Nope.