as required by law or ordinances, or that one can otherwise
expect. Both decisions to take measures and to not take measures
must be documented. Criminal liability for misconduct in the ex-
ercise of public authority not only embraces those who indepen-
dently make decisions, but also those who carry out tasks related
to such decisions. Subordinate personnel such as office workers
with duties limited to paperwork and dispatching, for example,
are exempt. In conjunction with emergency rescue operations,
this can entail that several supervisors can be criminally liable in
the event of misconduct, but those who carry out decisions, often
firefighters, are not criminally liable because firefighters cannot
normally view a response operation in its entirety. This assumes,
however, that the decision does not lead to obviously improper
conduct or failure to act, even on the part of firefighters. As discu-
ssed previously, the employer must provide equipment for execu-
ting tasks and the employees must train and exercise in using this
equipment. This reasonably entails that there is a certain responsi-
bility on both the part of employers and employees to utilise new
technology and new methods.
axel boer
(Axel Boer)
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