French barman guilty over 56 shots that killed customer


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French barman guilty over 56 shots that killed customer

A French barman has been convicted of manslaughter and given a suspended sentence after allowing a customer to drink 56 shots that led to his death.

Renaud Prudhomme, 56, was at the bar with his daughter and friends when he attempted to break its shots record.

Mr Prudhomme was helped home but later taken to hospital, where he died the following day.

Barman Gilles Crepin, 47, admitted he encouraged Mr Prudhomme by displaying the shots record on a noticeboard.

Mr Crepin was given a four-month suspended sentence and banned from working in a bar for a year.

His lawyer, Renaud Portejoie, said he would appeal against the decision.

"It's a decision guided by emotion and the unconscious desire to set an example," said Mr Portejoie,

He told the court that Mr Prudhomme had existing respiratory and alcohol abuse problems.

"We can't ask every customer who buys alcohol to present their medical certificates," he said.

Antoine Portal, who represented Mr Prudhomme's daughter, said the family was "relieved" by the decision to ban Mr Crepin from working as a bartender.

"We want to remind some professionals that it is illegal to serve alcohol to clients who are in an advanced state of inebriation," she said.

Source: BBC News

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Surely the customer was just as liable if not more? It's not as if the barman forced shots down his throat. It's the usual mentality that it's always someone else's fault!

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Surely the customer was just as liable if not more? It's not as if the barman forced shots down his throat. It's the usual mentality that it's always someone else's fault!

 

At some point the customer stopped being legally responsible for his actions.  It might have been at 10 shots or it might have been at 50 but at some point he would have been too drunk to take responsibility for what he was doing.  It's fairly well established that barmen/women shouldn't sell alcohol to intoxicated customers.

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At some point the customer stopped being legally responsible for his actions.  It might have been at 10 shots or it might have been at 50 but at some point he would have been too drunk to take responsibility for what he was doing.  It's fairly well established that barmen/women shouldn't sell alcohol to intoxicated customers.

In that case i'll get myself wasted and commit some crimes

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 It's fairly well established that barmen/women shouldn't sell alcohol to intoxicated customers.

 

 

It's certainly the law where I am from. When you get your RSA (Responsible service of Alcohol) certificate one of the thing they stress to you is that if you plough a customer with alcohol you can be held liable or partially liable for anything they do. You are also forbidden from serve alcohol to anyone who is visibly inebriated.

 

In that case i'll get myself wasted and commit some crimes

 

Except you just told us you were going to do that, so that is pre-meditated :p

 

Additionally, there is a difference between you buying your own alcohol and consuming in excessive amount and someone selling you alcohol while your are inebriated. The barman should have cut him off, if he then went home and got ploughed and died then it would have been on his own head.

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It's certainly the law where I am from. When you get your RSA (Responsible service of Alcohol) certificate one of the thing they stress to you is that if you plough a customer with alcohol you can be held liable or partially liable for anything they do. You are also forbidden from serve alcohol to anyone who is visibly inebriated.

 

 

Except you just told us you were going to do that, so that is pre-meditated :p

 

Additionally, there is a difference between you buying your own alcohol and consuming in excessive amount and someone selling you alcohol while your are inebriated. The barman should have cut him off, if he then went home and got ploughed and died then it would have been on his own head.

If he drank the shots in quick succession then the barman would be unable to gauge how inebriated he was as it wouldn't have had enough time to get into his bloodstream. Plus the fact the someone else did it and didn't die suggests he didn't fully understand the consequences of it.

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The barman shouldn't have supplied him  with so much alcohol in the first place.

 

I'm not sure what a shot size is in France, in Aus it is 30ml.

 

30ml x 56 = 1.680

 

1.680/700 = 2.4

 

That equates to 2.4 bottles of whiskey. :\

 

That is a crapload of liquor to give to anyone. And he knew the customer was trying to break the record so he can't argue that he thought those shots were for everyone.

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In Michigan a server/bar/tavern or private host that over-serves an intoxicated guest has both criminal and civil liability.

Additionally, we have a "dram shop" law which allows those injured by an over-served person to sue the server or host for damages.

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