EMSA Driver Faces Homicide Charges in Fatal Crash

You would have 0 backing from my agency if the facts in the article are true.

"Do no further harm" ring a bell to anyone? There is a miniscule amount of situations where seconds count, there is absolutely no reason to endanger the public like that, but as Cawolf said, we weren't there, we have no right to monday morning QB it.
 
This guy is an idiot. He would be charged with dangerous driving causing death or worse and pretty much kiss his life goodbye forever.

I mean lets be fair if we admit it theres nothing better than driving a three ton merc ambulance through rush hour traffic, going as hard down on the air horn and the two tone as you can, it's great it's a bloody good thing to do anybody mental who tell you different .

Emergent driving is probably not all that necessary anyway and even when it is, doesn't mean you have to be unsafe or reckless about it, the opposite infact.

We can only go thirty k over the speed limit and the only real place you get to do that around here is the motorway or up north due to traffic or the physical road layout
 
A different opinion.....

So, after everyone has this guy tried, convicted and sentenced, let me offer up a different perspective:

Only recently are we in EMS, and emergency services for that matter, really addressing the issues about emergency driving, and trust me, it's far from all the driver's fault.

First, take the classification of emergencies: P1 (D&E jobs), P2 (C), P3 (B) and P4 (A) (this is the classification that most places use with EMD). In our region, calls are WAY over triaged by 911. At least half of our priority 1 jobs are BS. "Leg pain with trouble breathing." "Fall with a cardiac history." P2 jobs are not much better: "Chest pain (for the 8th time this week)." I work in a city whose population is about 215,000. Fire only responds on P1 EMS jobs, but we are expected to respond lights and sirens, per company policy, and all P1, P2 and P3 jobs. We have a 7 minute 59 second response time for P1 and P2 jobs and 15 min 59 sec on P3 jobs. For every call where we don't make the time frame, we have to (as a company) pay a fine to the city. From the research that I've heard, that 8 minutes for P1 and P2 jobs is completely arbitrary and not based on any proven reduction in mortality. Also, I used to have a boss that would regularly quote (and I've never found the academic reference to it) that there is a 400% increased risk that someone will die in a motor vehicle collision just from us turning on our lights.

So, the 911 center makes a ton of ridiculous calls high priority jobs, the city puts arbitrary and unrealistic time frames on them, refuses to send BLS FR for calls that we are required to go red for, and our company mandates red responses and regularly reminds us that time exceptions cost us money, which could be raises and increased benefits. Thus, we are going red FAR more than we should be.

Sure, our company has policies, like no more than 10 mph over the posted speed limit, ever. Driving with due regard. No lights on the expressway. No distracted driving. But those policies are in place to protect the company. What they really mean is "don't get caught doing these things".

My question is, if this guy had a drive cam, and was caught going 83 mph into oncoming traffic, and there was no collision or incident, what would have happened with him? I'm betting a warning. If that's the case, it makes this whole thing a witch hunt.

The whole culture needs to change. At least in our city, fire and police (fire especially) have HORRIBLE emergency driving practices. Our crews will approach an intersection from another direction and routinely hit the panic button on the drive cam and watch fire completely blow the intersections with NO regard. We can't understand why they haven't killed someone yet. We also now have intersection cameras that catch people blowing the red lights. If we do, then the driver has to pay the $50 fine. That includes if you get too close to the crosswalk but never enter the intersection. Police and fire are getting the fines too. Know what the police do even more then? Turn their red lights on feet before the intersection and run it. I can't wait for THAT to cause an accident and see the lawsuits.

It's all a wink and a nod; just don't get in an accident, because we really need you to make it in under 8 minutes to all these calls. If you break the rules, it's OK. Wait; you got in an accident? We are go to strictly apply the rules, and you better hope to God you didn't break any, or you're on your own.
 
Quit and get another job. Some games best not won, and some not played at all.

All those precautions sound reasonable as long as the company doesn't turn around and penalize you for following them. Then the fault is with the company, not the rules.
Doesn't matter of FD, LE , or JC on roller skates whiz by doing Warp Four, it's wrong.
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There is no justification for driving 83mph in a city. The distance involved wouldn't mean any significant time saved (regarding pt outcome) and then the likelihood of a crash or being pulled over and cited are high....more delay

If the employer insists upon such a double standard, it feeds the line workers to the gators. Quit, they will use you up and spit you out like the others.
 
I wouldn't mind him being fired for something that stupid, but the outcome is always one factor in determining punishment. Otherwise murder and attempted murder or petty theft and grand theft would have the same punishment.
 
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