These days lawsuits are passed around like dirty diapers, with every American looking to hold someone responsible for anything they can think of. But it also comes down to people not wanting to take responsibility for their own stupidity, either. Just think of all the frivolous lawsuits surrounding Tesla, and its AutoPilot software – most of these were complete crap, and people didn’t want to admit they drove their car into their own house. Well, the same thing boils down to texting and driving, with people wanting to blame phone manufacturers for not doing something to block distracted driving. In this case, I’m talking about Apple, and the lawsuit brought against the company by David Riggs, whose son was unfortunately killed way too soon by someone who was texting and driving. That lawsuit has been withstanding for a while now, but it’s finally coming to a close.
Whether or not Apple has really put profits above safety remains to be seen but, much like the case from 2016 that said it was unreasonable that Apple be held “responsible for ultimate harm,” the Judge ruled in Apple’s favor for this case as well and dismissed this lawsuit, ultimately saying that blaming of the fatal accident on Apple was “attenuated.” The case was thrown out and cannot be filed under the same claim again. The driver that was responsible for the accident was charged with a misdemeanor for using his iPhone while driving, but Riggs ultimately wanted to put the blame on Apple. For now, it looks like Riggs will have to look somewhere else to place blame, and should perhaps consider going after the person responsible for the accident… just a thought.
Why File Suit Against Apple and Not the Driver? MONEY
Granted, Davids Riggs lost his son. That’s something no parent should ever have to go through, and my heart goes out to him and his family. But, at the same time, all of the money in the world won’t bring him back. Now, while I tend to side with the fact that perhaps manufacturers could do something to help combat distracted driving – you can’t drive a mile without seeing someone staring at their damn phone – you can’t just go after a company when there is a responsible party, the distracted driver that caused the accident. If Riggs really wanted justice, he would have filed suit against that distracted driver, not the manufacturer of the phone he was using. That’s like suing Ford because some idiot in a Mustang ran you over as he was leaving a Cars & Coffee meet. At this rate, we might as well start suing universities for every accident that occurs on campus when a driver gets caught up looking at some student as she walks down the sidewalk in her booty shorts (it does happen) or perhaps we can sue the clothing manufacturers instead.
I know, it sounds ridiculous and maybe even a little cold hearted, but it just doesn’t make sense to sue Apple over distracted drivers. Automakers have the ability to limit power delivery, acceleration, and top speed for cars, but you don’t see them getting sued every time some idiot goes too fast and causes an accident. In the end, don’t blame the people that make distracted driving possible, blame the people that are too irresponsible to put their phone down when they are driving. Obviously, you’re not going to get much money out of some kid driving a Ford Taurus or some girl wearing booty shorts, but hey you want justice, right?
References
Apple iCar
Read our speculative review on the Apple iCar.
Ford Mustang
Read our full review on the Ford Mustang.
Ford Taurus
Read our full review on the Ford Taurus.
Apple
Read our latest news and stories of Apple.