In a bizarre (and some would say poetic) twist on the recent violent protests against the United States, a Pakistani protester, Abdullah Ismail, died after reportedly inhaling smoke from a burning American flag in Lahore.
Ismail died at Mayo Hospital a day after attending the protest and flag burning. His associates said that he immediately felt ill after inhaling the smoke from the burning flag.
Now here is a provocative thought for torts. The Supreme Court has said that flag burning is protected speech and has long been a common expression of protest. See Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989) and U.S. v. Eichman, 496 U.S. 310 (1990 If flag manufacturers can expect that a certain number of flags will be burned, is this a case of “foreseeable misuse” for a product liability case. The claim would be that the highly toxic chemicals are a defective design due to their release in anticipated burning. Of course, a warning could suffice to warn extremists who show due care in selecting flags to burn. See Comment j to the Restatement (Second) of Torts 402A (“Where warning is given, the seller may reasonably assume that it will be read and heeded; and a product bearing such a warning, which is safe for use if it is followed, is not in defective condition, nor is it unreasonably dangerous.” ). However, as noted in Lewis v. Am. Cyanamid Co., 682 A.2d 724, 732 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. 1996):
If there is an objectively foreseeable likelihood that a product will be subject to misuse and that that misuse will endanger users despite appropriate warnings, then warnings alone will not satisfy the manufacturer’s duty. In addition to providing warnings, the manufacturer must also take all other feasible measures required by a risk-utility analysis to make even anticipated misusers of the product reasonably safe.
Of course, I would not start looking for a contingency lawyer just yet. Even if you could get pass the jurisdictional problems and finding 12 people in voir dire without a bias against a flag burning religious fanatic, you would still have assumption of the risk problems for a man who participated in a despicable act.
Source: NY Post
Holy smokes!
Karma laced with irony.
Delicious.
Gives new meaning to death by flag:
OS and AY had it right. Karma is a b-tch sometimes.
When and how can one educate a parent?
My mother (won’t call her mom, too affectionate) was everybody’s superego. Even her grandchildren–at least those who would listen.
Kerstin’s pop used to throw her as a ten-year old with opposing opinions down the stairs. Good argument!
What if the flag, like nearly everything else including the Olympic uniforms, was made in China?
My father was incensed about the burning of the flag by protesters. I took the other side of the “discussion” in pointing out that it was a legitimate form of protest when you strongly object to what the government is doing, like making war.
“discussion” with my father meant his word was law so shut up. I was the obstreperous child who didn’t.
John Edwards is enroute to sign on as plaintiff attorney for this poor victim of American corporate negligence and greed. He’s grown a beard.
Strange; it looks like he burned it in a well ventilated room.
“If flag manufacturers can expect that a certain number of flags will be burned, . . . .”
Considering that burning the US flag is the officially approved manner of disposal for a worn or damages flag, I think it cannot be denied that manufacturers expect quite a few flags to be burned. So, if the story is true, I suspect the guy died from either regular smoke inhalation and/or perhaps some idiosyncratic condition of his, NOT from any particular “highly toxic chemicals” in US flags. I’m extremely skeptical that such highly toxic chemicals exist in US flags. Just one more reason the hypothetical lawsuit would not succeed.
Sometimes you burn the flag. Sometimes the flag burns you.
Was it the stars or the stripes that did him in?
I always heard papers were bad for you……
OS,
Karma is a real attention getter….. You no longer look at things the way you once did…..
how do you embed cyanide gas in fabric to be released when burned and keep it stable at all other times?
Sounds like a 501-C3 in the making – Flags for Fanatics.
Mission Statement:
Provide free, high quality flags to radical middle eastern thugs at little or no cost.
Marketing Campaign:
Our flags, upon ignition provide a one way ticket to paradise.
Note to self:
is Ian Brown available?
What if he caught himself on fire? Who would be responsible? Surely he knew the danger of using accellerant or fire and if so he would have known the danger in inhaling smoke of any kind. He assumed the risks. Would the Cheerios protester have a case against General Mills for catching his dumb ass on fire?
Don’t Tread On Me. Or Else!
Concluding from what JT says, the Supreme Court protects despicable acts. That’s logical.
Product used for enhancing burning, of course, has been proven innocent.
Maybe they tased him.
The longer I live and observe the human condition, the more I believe in karma.
Perhaps the flag manufacturer could argue the warning was already implied, that is the “Vex” in Vexillology
Or possibly that since the patient believed he was acting under God’s Will, he should have known a Force Majeur might occur and was therefore negligent himself.
I am so sorry…… I can’t comment on this…. I’m laughing too hard…………..#@&*!