Question

Ralph was hired as a maintenance worker for Acme Safes, Inc. He asked one of the women in the office, Joyce, to go on a date with him, and she declined. He continued to ask her out, but gave up and didn't go back to work for several days. Then he showed up at her home and killed her with a gun. Which of the following is most correct regarding the liability exposure of Acme Safes?

	A.	Acme Safes, Inc. is liable under the theory of respondeat superior.
	B.	Acme Safes, Inc. is liable under the theory of negligent hiring.
	C.	If Acme Safes, Inc. failed to conduct a background check on Ralph which would have disclosed that he had stalked and injured women in the past, then Acme would be liable under the theory of negligent hiring.
	D.	Acme is not liable because the act was not committed while either employee was on duty, nor on the business premises.

Answer 1

Answer: Option C. If Acme Safes, Inc. failed to conduct a background check on Ralph which would have disclosed that he had stalked and injured women in the past, then Acme would be liable under the theory of negligent hiring.

Explanation:

Though the murder happened in Joyce’s home, many times while in office Ralph has asked Joyce to go on a date with him which comes under sexual harassment for which employer can be liable. Hence the employer Acme Safes may or may not have liability under respondeat superior which makes the employer liable for the acts of the employee while performing the duty based on whether they have exercised reasonable care to prevent the harassing behavior of the employee. The employer is not liable if they have exercised reasonable care and the employee failed to take advantage of the preventive or corrective opportunities provided by the employer to avoid the harm. Else they would be liable as the harassment from workplace resulted in the murder. Hence option A and D are not correct without these details. The case does not show any information on whether the employer has done proper background check before hiring Ralph or not. Hence Acme Safes cannot be held liable for negligent hiring without this information and option B is also not correct. But if Acme Safes, Inc. failed to conduct a background check on Ralph which would have disclosed that he had stalked and injured women in the past, then Acme would be liable under the theory of negligent hiring. A company can be legally liable if it fails to uncover the employee’s unfitness by checking the criminal records through proper background check. Hence the correct answer is option C.