Abstract
When a person takes his own life, grieving loved ones often try to understand why. Sometimes they blame themselves or the decedent’s mental health; in other situations, they may blame another person when circumstances suggest the decedent was pushed to commit suicide. Interesting legal issues arise when a decedent’s family tries to hold a person legally liable for causing his suicide. The Illinois Supreme Court faced these issues in Turcios v. DeBruler.
Illinois and other jurisdictions have traditionally held that an individual’s suicide is an unforeseeable, intervening cause. This precludes plaintiffs from maintaining wrongful death actions against tortfeasors for negligently causing a suicide. Most courts depart from this rule when a tortfeasor intentionally commits a tort that results in a victims’ suicide. Instead, these jurisdictions employ a less rigorous causation analysis to establish liability if the tortfeasor’s intentional conduct is a substantial factor in bringing about the suicide. In Turcios v. DeBruler, the Illinois Supreme Court departs from this trend in favor of a demanding causation analysis that insulates intentional tortfeasors from liability for causing a suicide. This Note argues the Illinois Supreme Court incorrectly limited intentional tortfeasors’ liability to foreseeable consequences. By doing so, the court created a standard that fails to distinguish between intentionally injuring a victim, thereby causing his suicide, and negligently doing so. As a result, the court’s holding has the predominant effect of denying wrongful death claims predicated on suicide in cases worthy of justice.
Recommended Citation
Kelly A. Meredith,
Who is Responsible When Someone Commits Suicide? An Examination of Turcios v. DeBruler Co., 2015 IL 117962, 32 N.E. 3d 1117,
41
S. Ill. U. L.J.
137
(2016).
Available at:
https://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/siulj/vol41/iss1/6