Moral Dilemma #4 - Hit & Run

[lily.]

4. Hit and Run

One morning you are driving to work, and as per usual you are running a bit late, so you are driving a touch faster than the speed limit. You reach down to your stereo to change the CD, when all of a sudden your car hits something solid. You spin to a stop, but not before several more cars have run into you and each other in an attempt to avoid the accident.

As you look up and out of your car, you can see that you hit a person, and that the person is not looking very good. In fact, you are sure that they are dead. You shakily get out of your car, and look around at the damage that has been caused. Several cars have been badly smashed up, but more importantly you have killed someone with your careless driving.

As you are standing there in shock, a woman comes up to you, tears running down her face, and obviously very shook up. As a natural reaction, you ask her what is wrong. She gives you a funny look, and then she explains that she just ran over someone. You ask her where this person is, and she points towards the person that you ran over!

You don’t understand why, but for some reason this woman thinks that she caused this accident and killed the person, when in fact you are well aware that you were the cause. Whoever accepts the blame is likely to be placed in jail for a very long time. If you let the woman take the blame, there is a very good chance you will get away with it all. However, there is also the chance that you could be placed in jail for even longer for trying to cover it up.



Source: Top 10 Moral Dilemmas (http://listverse.com/2007/10/21/top-10-moral-dilemmas/)

[Benjamin]

I'd admit to it being myself. I couldn't live with my conscience if someone else was to go to jail for something that I caused.

[MTVN]

I'm sure there would be other witnesses or that the authorities would figure out it was you, I'd probably confess though regardless I think

[lostalex]

I'd believe the woman, if she is sure then she is sure, who am i to argue with her?

You said I was not looking at the road when it happened, so how could i be sure I was responsible?

I wouldn't lie about it though, i'd just tell it like i remember, i was distracted by the radio, and i had no idea what happened. That'd be the truth.

[Niamh.]

I would tell her that I thought that I had hit the pedestrian, if she thought she had, I could be wrong also, so would let the authorities decide for sure. I'm sure they would find out anyway by the marks on the car

[Tom4784]

I'd let her take the rap, if I could get away with it I wouldn't have any qualms about doing so.

[Niamh.]

I'd let her take the rap, if I could get away with it I wouldn't have any qualms about doing so.

Weren't you against the death penalty? Or am I imagining that?

[lostalex]

Mod Fight!!!! :)

[Niamh.]

Mod Fight!!!! :)

lol, no, I'm just curious as to how he can be so morally concerned about the rights of murderers but would quite happily let an innocent women go down for something he did? :laugh:

[InOne]

I'm sure the massive dent in my car would give away that I actually did it.

[MeMyselfAndI]

lol, no, I'm just curious as to how he can be so morally concerned about the rights of murderers but would quite happily let an innocent women go down for something he did? :laugh:

Is also puzzled by this D:

[Tom4784]

Weren't you against the death penalty? Or am I imagining that?

What's that got to do with anything? Was the person killed in this accident sentenced to that fate by a court? No they weren't so I'm not sure why you're bringing it up to be honest. I'm against the Death penalty since it lowers the justice system completely, the only difference between murder and the death penalty is a misplaced sense of self righteousness and justice.

The only way I can see any relevance would be if the woman was going to get sentenced to death which would never happen in the UK. Motor based sentences are actually quite lax.

The fact that I'm morally grey doesn't have any impact of what I think of crime and punishment.

[lostalex]

It's possible in this scenario that the other woman hit the man and killed him while driving from the other direction, and then his body was thrown into yur lane, and yu hit his already dead body.

[Z]

I think the threat of lying and being found out and punished worse would swing my decision towards admitting it was me who committed the hit and run, as tempting as it might be to let someone else take the blame.

[lily.]

I'd let her take the rap, if I could get away with it I wouldn't have any qualms about doing so.

lol.. you're a total bastard.. I love it!

I would tell the police I wasn't paying attention, and that I didn't know if I'd hit the pedestrian. They can figure this stuff out by the tracks on the road and the marks on the car, so I may as well tell the truth. I wouldn't want to get away with it anyway, even if I could.

[lostalex]

I think the threat of lying and being found out and punished worse would swing my decision towards admitting it was me who committed the hit and run, as tempting as it might be to let someone else take the blame.

nothing in the original story said it was a hit and run. clearly everyone involved is still at the original scene of the accident, and i think it should be pointed out, it seems like just an ACCIDENT no matter who hit her.

[Niamh.]

What's that got to do with anything? Was the person killed in this accident sentenced to that fate by a court? No they weren't so I'm not sure why you're bringing it up to be honest. I'm against the Death penalty since it lowers the justice system completely, the only difference between murder and the death penalty is a misplaced sense of self righteousness and justice.

The only way I can see any relevance would be if the woman was going to get sentenced to death which would never happen in the UK. Motor based sentences are actually quite lax.

The fact that I'm morally grey doesn't have any impact of what I think of crime and punishment.

I just think it's interesting that you think people who have genuinely murdered one or more people should be protected but you'd feel fine about letting someone think they'd killed someone when they hadn't. Even if their sentence was light they'd have to live with it on their conscience for the rest of their lives.

[Z]

nothing in the original story said it was a hit and run. clearly everyone involved is still at the original scene of the accident, and i think it should be pointed out, it seems like just an ACCIDENT no matter who hit her.

Sorry, poor choice of wording, I meant admitting it was me who ran her over

[lostalex]

Niamh is making a perfectly good point. why would you be be perfectly happy to let someone else take all the blame, when it was clearly just an accident. It was an accident for everyone involved, no one should be punished too harshly.

[Tom4784]

lol, no, I'm just curious as to how he can be so morally concerned about the rights of murderers but would quite happily let an innocent women go down for something he did? :laugh:

Nice, personal snipes now is it Niamh? How very endearing.

Of course just because I don't think we should murder people in the name of Justice obviously means I go around hugging murderers and the like.

If you actually read and understood any of my posts on the issue of the Death Penalty then you'd realise i'm less then concerned with the rights of criminals and that i'm more focused on having a fair justice system. It's hard to have a fair system when you include emotionally charged punishments such as the Death Penalty.

But please, carry on with your cheap attempt at scoring points.

[Niamh.]

Nice, personal snipes now is it Niamh? How very endearing.

Of course just because I don't think we should murder people in the name of Justice obviously means I go around hugging murderers and the like.

If you actually read and understood any of my posts on the issue of the Death Penalty then you'd realise i'm less then concerned with the rights of criminals and that i'm more focused on having a fair justice system. It's hard to have a fair system when you include emotionally charged punishments such as the Death Penalty.

But please, carry on with your cheap attempt at scoring points.

Jesus, calm down Dezzy. I was just curious, it was the first thing that came into my head when you posted your answer. It was just a question.

[Tom4784]

I just think it's interesting that you think people who have genuinely murdered one or more people should be protected but you'd feel fine about letting someone think they'd killed someone when they hadn't. Even if their sentence was light they'd have to live with it on their conscience for the rest of their lives.

Just because I don't want to murder people doesn't mean I want murderers to be protected, let them face the harsh reality of prison. I just don't think courts should stoop to their levels. I don't know why people are failing to grasp that.

At the end of the day a lot of people WOULD say they'd do the right thing but if it happened in real life I'm guessing most of the people on here would opt to save their own skin, I'm just being honest about it instead of lying to myself by saying I'd do the right thing. If I got caught then yeah I'd face the consequences but like a lot of people I'd opt to save myself if I could.

[Niamh.]

Just because I don't want to murder people doesn't mean I want murderers to be protected, let them face the harsh reality of prison. I just don't think courts should stoop to their levels. I don't know why people are failing to grasp that.

At the end of the day a lot of people WOULD say they'd do the right thing but if it happened in real life I'm guessing most of the people on here would opt to save their own skin, I'm just being honest about it instead of lying to myself by saying I'd do the right thing. If I got caught then yeah I'd face the consequences but like a lot of people I'd opt to save myself if I could.

Fair enough.

Although I'm sure the authorities would find out anyway, plus chances are the first woman might have knocked the woman down if she was as sure as you were that she had. Especially since you weren't even looking at the road at the time, you may have hit the person after she had.

[lostalex]

I think i understand what Dezzy is saying. Dezzy isn't really against the idea of the death penalty, he/she(i'm not sure, sorry) is more saying that the justice system is flawed, and we'd need a much better courts system to make sure that the people that DO get the death penalty are really guilty. and i'd agree with that.

That's the same reason i'm against the death penalty. I'm not against the death penalty for guilty people, i'm just against the death penalty because i know that the justice system can make mistakes.

I'm not against the death penalty in principal. i'm just against it in practice.

[Niamh.]

I think i understand what Dezzy is saying. Dezzy isn't really against the idea of the death penalty, he/she(i'm not sure, sorry) is more saying that the justice system is flawed, and we'd need a much better courts system to make sure that the people that DO get the death penalty are really guilty. and i'd agree with that.

That's the same reason i'm against the death penalty. I'm not against the death penalty for guilty people, i'm just against the death penalty because i know that the justice system can make mistakes.

That's the only thing that would sway me from the Death penalty too, have you seen The Life of David Gale? That was a good film

[lily.]

The Death Penalty needs it's own thread.

Also, Dezzy is a 'he'. :)

[Niamh.]

The Death Penalty needs it's own thread.

Also, Dezzy is a 'he'. :)

Sorry Linda :joker:

[Jack_]

I'd most likely accept the blame, couldn't live with that on my conscience for the rest of my life.

[MTVN]

I think i understand what Dezzy is saying. Dezzy isn't really against the idea of the death penalty, he/she(i'm not sure, sorry) is more saying that the justice system is flawed, and we'd need a much better courts system to make sure that the people that DO get the death penalty are really guilty. and i'd agree with that.

That's the same reason i'm against the death penalty. I'm not against the death penalty for guilty people, i'm just against the death penalty because i know that the justice system can make mistakes.

I'm not against the death penalty in principal. i'm just against it in practice.

No I'm pretty sure that isn't what he's saying, he can correct me if I'm wrong but I think he's saying he isn't necessarily against the death penalty because of his morals but because it's an emotional response to punishment which isn't a sound basis for a justice system, and brings it down to the same level of the criminal, the only distinction being a misguided sense of "right" and "justice"

Oh and sorry for continuing the death penalty discussion, I'll leave it there

[lostalex]

oh ok MTVN, wel then i disagree with that then. because i do think there are trully evil people in this world that really should be killed for the betterment of the world. I do think there are people who the world would be better off if they were dead, and i do think society should have the right to kill those kind of people.

I just don't think that our justice system is sophisticated enuf to truly choose which people should be killed yet. I'm not against the death penalty for moral reasons. If we had a perfect justice system then i'd totally support the death penalty. But i don't think any country ion the world has a perfect justice system yet.

[Niall]

I'd turn myself in, but I would definitely mention the other woman if she ran off or something. Even though I'd accept all the chances that I may have ran the other person over, I'd offer no hesitation in investigating the fact that it wasn't me at someone else's expense either.

[Josy]

I would say that I was unsure what had happened then let the police deal with it.

[Tom4784]

No I'm pretty sure that isn't what he's saying, he can correct me if I'm wrong but I think he's saying he isn't necessarily against the death penalty because of his morals but because it's an emotional response to punishment which isn't a sound basis for a justice system, and brings it down to the same level of the criminal, the only distinction being a misguided sense of "right" and "justice"

Oh and sorry for continuing the death penalty discussion, I'll leave it there

Pretty much this, thanks for putting it across in a clear fashion. I'm not going to discuss this anymore though, the subject always ends up going around in circles whenever it's bought up.

[Z]

I'm not sure I could do what some of you are saying and feigning ignorance without actually acknowledging whether or not you are guilty.. it's still lying, even if it is just to yourself. And if you get off with it, you've still lied your way out of doing it, to me that seems even sneakier. I think most of us would be tempted to go with that route if it came down to it, but personally I'm too scared of repercussions being worse if I don't admit it outright - imagining the response of the victim's family is horrible to me...

[Niamh.]

I'm not sure I could do what some of you are saying and feigning ignorance without actually acknowledging whether or not you are guilty.. it's still lying, even if it is just to yourself. And if you get off with it, you've still lied your way out of doing it, to me that seems even sneakier. I think most of us would be tempted to go with that route if it came down to it, but personally I'm too scared of repercussions being worse if I don't admit it outright - imagining the response of the victim's family is horrible to me...

I agree, although If the other woman was as sure as you were that she'd knocked the person down then maybe she did, it's quite possible considering you weren't even watching the road. I'm sure the police would be able to find out who actually did though

[Vicky.]

If you werent watching the road, there is every possibility that the woman hit the person first, and you did after (movie style :laugh: )...or even that you hit something other than a person at a very bad time...

Why on earth would she be convinced it was her if it wasnt? :conf:

[Thats at least what I would convince myself while allowing her to take the blame...]

[Doogle]

I wouldn't be such a careless driver. :nono:

But eh, no way would I place that sort of blame on someone else; I'd say it was me for sure.

[Vicky.]

But eh, no way would I place that sort of blame on someone else; I'd say it was me for sure.

Tbf its not you placing the blame on her, she placed the blame on herself :laugh:

[Doogle]

Tbf its not you placing the blame on her, she placed the blame on herself :laugh:

Oh that's true, but again I think I'd feel forever guilty knowing I could have told her it wasn't her. Whilst she would not know otherwise (assuming there were no witnesses) I'd not want to feel so guilty for killing someone and on top of that letting someone else take the blame and let them feel so guilty about killing someone when they didn't. :joker:

[Vicky.]

Oh that's true, but again I think I'd feel forever guilty knowing I could have told her it wasn't her. Whilst she would not know otherwise (assuming there were no witnesses) I'd not want to feel so guilty for killing someone and on top of that letting someone else take the blame and let them feel so guilty about killing someone when they didn't. :joker:

However, it *might* have been her. And she might take the get out of jail free card once you 'confess' and you might end up doing time for something you didnt do.

I quite like this one actually :D

[Doogle]

However, it *might* have been her. And she might take the get out of jail free card once you 'confess' and you might end up doing time for something you didnt do.

I quite like this one actually :D

Ah thank you for saying this, you've made me see it a bit differently. I now need to give this another think through because I'm not entirely sure :joker:

Me too, this is one of my favourites.

[Jordan.]

I'd take the blame. The pedestrian shouldn't have been on the road.

[Jords]

I'd believe the woman, if she is sure then she is sure, who am i to argue with her?

You said I was not looking at the road when it happened, so how could i be sure I was responsible?

I wouldn't lie about it though, i'd just tell it like i remember, i was distracted by the radio, and i had no idea what happened. That'd be the truth.

Im with you here.

Couldnt deliberately lie the guilt would ruin my life.

[Bollo]

I'd tell the truth

[GypsyGoth]

I would admit to it.