Posted: May 18th, 2017

Randy owned an alpaca farm. Because the alpacas were very valuable, Randy strung an electric wire along the top of his fence to prevent thefts. He placed a small sign next to the generator for the electric fence wire warning about possible electric shocks.

Randy owned an alpaca farm. Because the alpacas were very valuable, Randy strung an electric wire along the top of his fence to prevent thefts. He placed a small sign next to the generator for the electric fence wire warning about possible electric shocks. Randy did not put up any other signs because he lived in the country and did not have any close neighbors. Some boy scouts were out hiking on adjacent land and one of the boys ran over to see the unusual-looking alpacas. The boy climbed up on the fence to get a better look and grabbed the wire to steady himself. The electric shock caused him to fall off of the fence. He hit his QUESTIONS & ANSWERS: CRIMINAL LAW 9 head on a rock when he landed, causing injury. Can Randy be found guilty under a statute criminalizing “reckless behavior on one’s property which results in an injury to others”? (A) Yes. Randy should have seen the inherent risk in installing an electric fence without putting up several warning signs. (B) Yes. Randy’s behavior created a substantial and unjustifiable risk. (C) No. Although his behavior created an unjustifiable risk, Randy did not know that boy scouts frequented the area and was thus unaware of the risk. (D) No. It is not clear that Randy’s actions, as opposed to the inattentive troop leader’s actions, led to the boy’s injuries.