Fear of law suits is high. I can fully understand someone with training ignoring the calls for help while off duty for fear of a law suit. I know off off duty firefighters , medics and nurses that hesitate at car accidents.

When I was a volunteer with a EMS-Rescue unit in NYC (we mostly spent our time doing highway rescue and extrication) we once got sued for using the Jaws of Life to cut someone out of their car! Yep, the driver was intoxicated and wrapped his nice sports car around a utility pole. He needed medical care and was fully pinned in the car. We cut off the drivers door, then the roof then tore out he steering wheel. Two or three weeks later we received a letter that we were being sued for the destruction of his car (I guess his car insurance wouldn't cover it it because he was way over the legal blood booze limit). We saved this man's life, we got him out of his car with minimal damage to his body (we care about humans not cars). The chief was pissed, the case was dismissed, but overall the whole experience was stupid.

More recently a friend of mine, who is a former 911 Paramedic, witnessed a patron going into cardiac arrest while out at dinner. He immediately administered a precordial thump and began CPR until Fire-EMS arrived to take over and take the patient. My friend now needs to go to court, as he is being sued for breaking two of the patients ribs.....never mind he saved this guy's life! Unbelievable this guy needs to spend money on a lawyer to defend his life saving actions against someone who's life he saved.

Anyone who knows anything about a precordial thump knows you will probably break someone's ribs, in fact very often ribs can be broken while administering CPR.

So are people fearful of law suits? Hell Yea!