The family of an 87-year-old Chinese man who fell off his electric bicycle and died in the street has taken 10 passers-by to court seeking compensation for not helping him.
In a case which has attracted nationwide attention, a court in the eastern province of Shandong handed down its verdict in March.
The court ruled that the pedestrians in question did not need to pay compensation because they were not obliged to help, the news portal Sohu reported.
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The normally healthy octogenarian was allowed to ride an electric bike by his family. But he suddenly felt uncomfortable and collapsed on the day of the incident last year, the report said.
Street surveillance footage showed some passers-by saw the old man fall and slowed down.
However, they simply looked at him and left the scene.
Only one boy tried to approach him, but was stopped by an adult standing nearby.
“This old man is meant to blackmail. There are too many such similar cases,” the adult, whose gender was not clear, told the boy, according to the report.
The cause of the elderly man’s death was not stated in the report.
His relatives, who were outraged that no one came forward to help, sued 10 passers-by and demanded each of them pay 140,000 yuan (US$19,000) in compensation.
The relatives said the apathy of the pedestrians was a key reason for the old man’s death.
The court rejected their request, explaining that the passers-by did not have any physical conflict with the man and therefore were not obliged to help.
China’s Civil Code stipulates that ordinary citizens, except those from specific professions such as police officers and doctors, do not have an obligation to intervene.
The case quickly became the talk of the country, receiving a mixed reaction.
“Our society’s moral standards are declining. What a shame!” said one netizen.
“I understand the reluctance of the passers-by. They could be blackmailed by the old man and his relatives. So doing nothing is aimed at protecting themselves,” said another.
In 2017, a woman supported an old man who fell in a Beijing street but was later extorted to pay compensation of 100,000 yuan (US$14,000).
After the woman called the police, her name was cleared thanks to video surveillance footage.
In a landmark case in Nanjing, north of Shanghai, in 2006, a man was sued by a woman and her relatives after he supported her following a fall on the road.
The woman demanded compensation from the man, claiming he had knocked her down.
A local court ruled in favour of the woman. The judge said: “If you had not run her down, why did you come to support her?”
Many critics argued that the case negatively influenced public perceptions of being a Good Samaritan.
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