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Should parents who refuse childhood vaccines be liable if their choice harms someone else’s kid? (lemmy.ca)
submitted 11 months ago by to c/canada@lemmy.ca
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Canada just lost its measles-free status. So here’s the question..

If an unvaccinated child spreads measles to someone else’s kid, why shouldn’t the parents be liable in small-claims court?

I’m not talking about criminal charges, just basic responsibility. If your choice creates the risk you should have to prove you weren’t the reason someone else’s child got sick.

Is that unreasonable?

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[–] [S] 7 points 11 months ago (2 children)

I don’t disagree with this mindset, but I do want to say that it should be on the plaintiff to prove your child caused the problem rather than the defendant to prove they did not. Proving a negative is damn near impossible in court.

If your choices raise everyone else’s risk, it’s fair that you carry some of the burden. Courts deal in probability every day.

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  • [–] 4 points 11 months ago

    No, we can't start throwing out burden of proof when it suits us.

    I've argued elsewhere in this thread that the solution is to obligate parents to provide vaccinations, just like they're obligated to provide food, water, clothing, shelter, etc. This is the basic legal duty of care that all parents have towards their children, and it should extend to vaccines. This is both a logical application of existing law - rather than requiring new law - and incredibly simple to prove in court. If parents are obligated to vaccinate their kids, all a cop or social worker has to do is ask for the proof of vaccination. There's no balance of proof to consider, and no knotty problems of untangling exactly how someone else's kid got sick.

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  • [–] 1 point 11 months ago

    Honestly, I'd settle for disclosure, especially now that they're removing school requirements in some states. It would be worth it to me to know which kids/ parents to keep my kids away from.

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