Also known as: reckless indifference · depraved indifference
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
2 senses
An implied form of malice consisting of a conscious disregard of an unjustifiably high risk of death to another person. This mental state supports a murder conviction under the abandoned-and-malignant-heart doctrine and satisfies Eighth Amendment proportionality for capital punishment of certain felony-murder accomplices.
Conduct that consciously disregards a substantial risk of harm to the rights or safety of others. Such conduct is sufficiently outrageous to support an award of punitive damages in addition to compensatory damages.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
An implied form of malice consisting of a conscious disregard of an unjustifiably high risk of death to another person. This mental state supports a murder conviction under the abandoned-and-malignant-heart doctrine and satisfies Eighth Amendment proportionality for capital punishment of certain felony-murder accomplices.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Rhea Reynolds and her brother planned an armed prison escape. After handing weapons to two convicted murderers, Rhea flagged down a passing car occupied by a family. The killers murdered the family. A court finds Rhea was a major participant who acted with reckless indifference to human life, elevating the killing to murder rather than manslaughter.
Rowan Russell supplies weapons to two men he knows have killed before and helps them rob a convenience store. During the robbery one accomplice shoots the clerk. Rowan did not fire the weapon but was a major participant who knew the robbery carried a grave risk of death. His reckless indifference to human life supplies implied malice for murder.
Ruby Rivera participates in an armed robbery as the getaway driver. She knows her accomplices are armed and that the store is occupied. One accomplice kills the clerk. Because Ruby was a major participant who acted with reckless indifference to human life, the Eighth Amendment permits imposition of the death penalty.
Reckless indifference to human life requires a higher degree of risk than the recklessness sufficient for involuntary manslaughter. The former supports murder under the abandoned-and-malignant-heart doctrine while the latter supports only manslaughter.
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Yes. A defendant who did not kill or intend to kill may still receive the death penalty if the defendant was a major participant in the felony and acted with reckless indifference to human life.
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Conduct that consciously disregards a substantial risk of harm to the rights or safety of others. Such conduct is sufficiently outrageous to support an award of punitive damages in addition to compensatory damages.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A bus driven by a Radiance Media employee strikes Regina Robinson, a bicyclist, and knocks her to the pavement. The dispatcher learns of the visible injury yet orders the driver to continue the route, assuring that someone else will respond. Regina sues for negligence and punitive damages. The dispatcher's knowing refusal to stop demonstrates reckless indifference to her safety, permitting punitive damages.
Rajesh Rao serves as trustee of a family trust. He invests trust assets in a high-risk venture that benefits only himself and ignores repeated warnings that the investment endangers the beneficiaries' principal. The trust instrument contains an exculpatory clause. The clause is unenforceable because Rajesh acted with reckless indifference to the purposes of the trust.
Rosa Ruiz, a Regal Apparel sales agent, tells a buyer the fabric is flame-retardant while knowing the claim rests on an unverified supplier label. She makes the statement without any belief about its accuracy and without caring how the buyer will understand it. The buyer later suffers burns. The reckless indifference supports a finding of fraudulent misrepresentation.
Yes. When a defendant's conduct consciously disregards a known, high risk to another's safety, it rises above ordinary negligence and qualifies as outrageous conduct that justifies punitive damages.
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An exculpatory clause is unenforceable to the extent it relieves a trustee of liability for a breach committed in bad faith or with reckless indifference to the purposes of the trust or the interests of the beneficiaries.
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…481 U. S. 137, 154, 158 (1987), upheld a state law authorizing capital punishment for major participation in a felony with reckless indifference to life where only 11 of the 37 death penalty States (30%) prohibited such punishment. Stanford , 492 U. S., at 372, upheld a state law permitting execution of defendants who committed a…
…a police officer violates the Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of substantive due process by causing death through deliberate or reckless indifference
…on a defendant who did not actually kill, but who was a major participant in a felony that resulted in murder and who acted with reckless indifference to human life
…who did not kill or attempt to kill, but who was a "major participa[nt] in the felony committed" and who demonstrated "reckless indifference to human life
…used, Enmund v. Florida , 458 U. S. 782, 797 (1982), or that the defendant was a major participant in the felony and exhibited reckless indifference to human life
Facts showing that management knew of a serious, immediate risk, received explicit warnings, yet deliberately chose to proceed for profit or convenience without taking feasible safety measures support a finding of reckless indifference.
Supporting sources