Parents sue after student is killed in fight
August 24, 2009 by Tom D'AgostinoPosted in: From the Courts, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views
The student made a tragic decision to join a fight. So why did his parents sue the school?
Morris Brown College student Hartwill Cornelius was hanging out with friends on the steps of a campus building when he saw a friend being attacked across the street.
The fight quickly escalated to involve about seven or eight people, and Cornelius ran across the street and jumped in.
It turned out to be a tragic decision. Cornelius was hit on the head with a glass bottle, and he later died.
His parents’ suit against the school said it should have had better security in the area, especially since it knew there was a high potential for trouble.
The court rejected the claims. It said adults who voluntarily join a fight assume the risk of getting hurt – or worse.
Cite: Cornelius v. Morris Brown College.
Did the court make the right call? Tell us what you think in the comments section below.
Tags: assumption of risk, fighting, school liability, student deaths
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August 26th, 2009 at 9:03 am
Yes, the courts made the right decision. It’s called personal responsibility and no one seems to have any anymore.
August 26th, 2009 at 11:40 am
I am truly sorry for their loss and the son had a compassionate heart so they should feel proud that he learned about concern for others from his parents. Unfortunately, he made a the wrong decision at that moment and the decision from the courts was correct.
If I went to your house and tripped while stepping up to your doorway, should I sue you??? Excessive sueing has driven our insurance premiums through the roof! We should do as the deceased young man and concern ourselves with each other and stop blaming others.
August 26th, 2009 at 11:42 am
What about the student who welded the lethal bottle?
August 26th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Don’t know if it was a student or other individual. Unaware of escalation of accounts, nor do I have knowledge of the deceased actions at that precise moment and no details if this young man was posing a threat to others. So was the bottle used against this individual for self defense purposes? Why was the blow delivered to the deceased? Why was a bottle used and not some other form of defense instrument used? Why was there a fight? Really wished these type of situations would never happen, but they do and I am dreading the day when my 17 year old takes off on his own, just as my parents dreaded me moving 2000 miles away to school, but I have to trust that I have taught him to be responsible for all his actions and to accept the outcome of all his choices. If my child makes a choice and the outcome is a heartbreak to him or others, then it was his decision and he will need to accept consequences, whether if he was the victim or the victimizer.
The question which was asked here, “did the court make the right decision”? Yes, they did.
August 26th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
You said it perfectly, Wendy.
August 26th, 2009 at 5:00 pm
This is a tough case in terms of ethics. The young man rushed over to aid a friend being attacked. That’s a pro-social act which society should protect; it’s not the same as “joining in the fight” for other reasons. There should be security provided near a campus building. The key issue for me would be whether there was negligence by the college in failing to provide security in a public area where it could be reasonably expected that there would be students congregating at night.
This is an historically Black college that seems to be going bankrupt or has already been closed. Not much money for security, nor probably for damages liability payments either. Would lack of funds be a justification for lack of security provided.
February 5th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
The idea that schools have to have security 24/7 so someone doesn’t get into a fight seems over the top to me and almost paternalistic. The school could of have security but they don’t follow students around waiting for 3 or more to gather. Police can’t be everywhere all the time–then you would have students complaining about police showing up whenever they gather. The student did the right thing to help his friend but the actions turned against him. Why didn’t he just call the police so they could come and intervene. Allmost like no good deed goes unpunished. I’m so sorry for the family.
February 5th, 2010 at 2:23 pm
Security (and Police, for that matter) are NOT there to protect individuals. They are there to protect the PUBLIC. Only you are responsible (as you should be) for protecting yourself. You do this every day by not going down darkened alleyways, playing in traffic, chewing on glass, etc.
This person who ran over to help his friend, I commend his actions. Although the outcome was tragic, the school cannot and should not be held responsible for the actions of individuals like this.
Most fights are over far faster than the police or school security can respond. Calling security would have been important, along with a description of who was doing the fighting but I can certainly understand why this guy jumped into the fray.
Taking responsibility for your own actions is critical for us as a nation and a world. The world really owes us nothing. My martial arts instructor told us that if he ever saw us in a fight, he would not ask questions, he would jump in to help…however, if he found out WE started the fight, we would be up against HIM (6′ tall 4th degree black belt with a LOT of power…I know this through experience even through a kick pad *whew*)
February 5th, 2010 at 4:40 pm
Object to this story being categorized as a ’student behaving badly’. He sounds as though he should be commended for his public spirited-ness. Its his parents who exercised poor judgment, possibly under the great strain of grief.
February 8th, 2010 at 6:07 pm
I agree with Julia that coming to a friend’s aid isn’t behaving badly. However, fighting is behaving badly. This situation seems a gray area between the two.
The fact is that college students are adults, and they should be treated as such. Colleges exist to provide education, not to prevent drunk students from falling out of dorm windows or to punish students for physically assaulting their bandmates or to prevent injuries suffered from voluntarily entering and participating in a physical fight on-campus.