Difficulty in understanding and communication has always been an expected part of travelling overseas and for many, this poses no great threat apart from some potential frustration. For Dutch teenager Vera Mol travelling in Spain however, a misunderstanding while participating in bungee jumping resulted in her jumping before she was properly secured, and plunging to her death. Apparently Mol had interpreted “no jump” as “now jump”. Her instructors are now facing the possibility of gaol time for the offence of gross negligence manslaughter.
Manslaughter is essentially murder without any ‘malice afterthought’ (i.e. there is no mens rea). There exists two forms of manslaughter – voluntary and involuntary. Gross negligence manslaughter is a form of involuntary manslaughter, where no intention to kill exists. It requires the existence of a duty of care and a breach in this duty, as well as gross negligence. In most jurisdictions, a very high level of negligence is required to warrant gross negligence manslaughter. In addition, an omission (or failing to do an act) can be a sufficient form of negligence.
The Spanish Court of Cantabria had ruled that the two bungee instructors and the operating company were subject to criminal liability as a result of Mol’s death however, the company appealed stating that the death was an accident caused by Mol jumping prematurely. In an unexpected turn of events, the Spanish Appeal Court has ruled the operators guilty of gross negligence manslaughter, stating that they erred in not checking her ID and in their choice of words. Mol was only 17 years old at the time of the incident and bungee jumping requires participants to be 18 years old, unless they have guardian permission. The Court also indicated that the operators should have used the phrase “don’t jump” rather than “no jump” to avoid the misunderstanding in communication. It emphasised that having known and admitted to having poor English skills, the operator should have recognised that his English was insufficient in instructing foreigners in “something as precarious as jumping into the void from an elevated point”.
Further, the operating company were at fault in not obtaining the necessary permits and installing the required security measures for such jumps. In accordance with Spain’s regulations, the bridge on which the jump had occurred was not permitted to be used for bungee jumping at all. Given these errors, the Court believed gross negligence manslaughter a suitable sentence and the two operators now face between one to four years of gaol time.
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