Legal Question in Legal Ethics in Missouri

Hi Ms. Gray. I am a Missouri attorney that handles wrongful death and injury cases resulting from the negligence of other parties. In order to establish a wrongful death claim, you must first prove negligence on the part of some party. Negligence is shown when it is proven that someone violated the usual standard of care of a reasonable person. For example, did the Doniphan Police Department violate the typical standard of care of a police department by releasing the suspect? Or, alternatively, did Oregon law enforcement officials violate the standard of care by not acting appropriately in some respect? You must then also establish that the act of negligence was the "proximate cause" of the death that occurred. Proximate cause is shown when you can prove that "but-for" a certain negligent act, the injury or death would not have occurred. It is also important to note that states and various law enforcement agencies are protected from legal liability by various forms of immunity. Whether or not immunity is applicable here (to prevent a suit against either police agency) cannot be determined without more detailed facts. The reason for not extraditing the suspect back to Oregon is important to determine whether negligence exists. How long was the suspect held at Doniphan Police Department? These are some of the details that would be needed to determine if potential liability exists, and whether immunity applies. For your convenience, I can be reached via e-mail at [email protected]. Thanks.

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