A simple mispronunciation possibly cost a teenager her life in a bungee jumping accident, a Spanish appeals court ruled this month. The Independent reports 17-year-old Vera Mol of the Netherlands died in 2015 after jumping from a bridge in Spain before her cord was secured to anything. According to the New York Times, court documents state an unnamed Spanish instructor told Mol in English: "No jump, it's important, no jump." The appeals court ruled it's clear Mol could have heard "now jump" due to the instructor's "incorrect use and pronunciation of English" as she immediately leaped from the bridge. The court ruled the instructor should have said "don't jump." The Daily Mail notes protocol called for the instructor to say exactly that.
The ruling clears the way for the instructor to face criminal charges, including accidental homicide, should prosecutors choose to bring them. The Telegraph reports the director of the company that employs the instructor will face prosecution for homicide through negligence. The court found a number of faults with the company beyond ruling the instructor didn't speak English well enough to instruct foreigners in something as dangerous as bungee jumping. It states Mol was not attached to a safety line on her way to the ledge, the instructor didn't check for parental consent as Mol was a minor, the company didn't have proper permits to jump from the 130-foot-high bridge, and more. (Girl survives 3,500-foot fall, wins $760,000.)
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