06-03-2015, 05:44 PM
(06-03-2015, 05:30 PM)Maggot Wrote: Jeb Clinton is a burglar albeit a skinny, savvy, intelligent burglar. He walks his small dog everyday through an influential neighborhood observing the comings and goings of certain particular domiciles.
His click is to let his dog loose and he chases him into the backyards of likely clients. His dog is also a watchdog.
Jeb lets the dog loose one day and he chases it towards the backyard of an empty residence. He ties the dog to a root and squeezes through a 12" gap between the house and the pool house. In his haste he trips on a statue of the virgin Mary and falls into the pool hitting his head on the way into the deep blue sleep. He dies.
Finding the visitor floating in the pool the owners call the police.
The zoning laws are reviewed and the gap should only have been 10"
Is the homeowner liable for the death? Poor Jeb was going to rob the place but the only 2 witnesses are the dog and a dead body. No tools were found.
In a court of law, the homeowner would be liable. There is no way to prove the intent of the would be burglar and he met his demise because of a discrepancy of 2" which allowed him to squeeze through the gap between house and pool house......or the homeowner wouldn't be liable, because the dog was off leash which is against the law in this community and thus, would be burglar was chasing an off leash dog which was itself, illegal. Depends on whether I am the Prosecutor or the Defense attorney....maybe I overlooked a clue, "the dog is also a watchdog."