Delaney Hodgson
Chicarelli
P.O.D.
26 November 2014
Kansas vs. Billy Scott and the Drunken Latina Alcohol is one of the greatest causes of death worldwide— it’s a poison, especially when given in excess by someone who only cares about a person’s money. Bartender Billy Scott was convicted of Involuntary Manslaughter, after allegedly killing Juanita Goodpasture, who died after consuming a red, yellow, and green alcoholic drink aptly named “The Stoplight.” Scott challenged his conviction on the belief that Goodpasture caused her own death by voluntarily drinking in excess, and continued to argue his side throughout the remainder of the case. When discussing Manslaughter, one must know the difference between the degrees of it, and how a person is decided to be charged with which. A separate crime from murder, manslaughter charges depend on the concept that the accused person did not mean to kill but brought about the death through illegal or irresponsible behavior. The word “kill” connotes proximate causation— not merely a peaceful, natural death. There are three types of Manslaughter, the first being Vehicular Manslaughter. This is a charge which can be used to prosecute someone who kills another person with a motor vehicle as a result of negligent or illegal driving. To gain a better understanding, someone who makes the rather dumb decision to drive drunk and causes a crash, where the result is the death of another person, may be charged with vehicular manslaughter. The second type of Manslaughter is Voluntary Manslaughter. This is the killing of a human being in which the offender had no prior intent to kill, and acted during the heat of the moment. Also, this person could possibly be under circumstances that would cause any reasonable person to become emotionally or mentally unstable. It is sometimes referred to as a “non-negligent manslaughter.” The following is an example of Voluntary Manslaughter. Dan comes home to find his wife in bed with Victor. In the heat of the moment, Dan picks up a golf club from next to the bed and strikes Victor in the head, killing him instantly. (“FindLaw: Voluntary Manslaughter Overview”)
The last of the three types is Involuntary Manslaughter. This is the unintentional killing of a human being that was committed during the carrying out of a lawful act in an unlawful manner. Let’s use poor old Dave in our example once more. Dave comes home to find his wife in bed with Victor, again… In order to drown out his sorrows, Dave heads to his local bar and gets intoxicated. Not thinking, he jumps in his car and strikes a pedestrian, killing him almost instantly. Rule number one, don’t drink and drive. Rule number two, don’t hit pedestrians. (Unless it is Victor, and then you can because he is sleeping with your wife.) Moral of the story, poor Dave would ultimately get charged with Involuntary Manslaughter because his wife is unfaithful. In case it hasn’t reached a full understanding, the following pages are going to be a prolonged example of our case defendant’s charge: Involuntary Manslaughter.
Billy LeRoy Scott was a 34 year old bar owner living in what seemed like the prime of his life. He owned The Point, a local bar that received good business, including that of Juanita Goodpasture, who was a regular at the establishment. Upon entering the bar, Juanita commenced drinking almost immediately, where her mother and sister joined her for a night of fun. She then participated in a drinking contest. This involved a red, yellow, and green concoction called the Stoplight Challenge. (“Jail Time”) The three women were drinking at the bar when Scott served the red, yellow and green drink to Goodpasture, according to testimony.
After drinking presumably too much alcohol, Goodpasture decided it was best to go home. Before she could even make it to her door, she collapsed in the lawn in front of her home. Whether she died over night, or promptly when she hit the ground, Juanita was found dead the next