The Responsibility Project^®. Exploring what it means to do the right thing

The Case of Ryan Holle

16 Comments

March 18, 2008 by Kathy McManus

How responsible are you for another person’s actions? 

 If you loan your car to a friend, and the friend gets into an accident, it’s generally understood that as the owner of the car, you’ll be held legally liable to some degree. 

But if you loan your car to a friend, and the friend uses the car to drive three other people to a house where they commit murder, are you just as guilty as those who took part in the crime, even though you weren’t even there? 

A Florida court says yes. In Serving Life for Providing Car to Killers the New York Times examines the case of 20 year old Ryan Holle, currently serving a life sentence without possibility of parole in a Florida prison. A jury found him guilty of first-degree murder because he lent his car to a friend, who then drove three other men to a house where they killed an 18 year old girl. Holle was elsewhere when the crime occurred. 

In assigning responsibility to Holle, the prosecutor connected the dots:
“No car, no crime.” 
“No car, no murder.” 
“This crime could not and would not have been committed without Mr. Holle’s car,” he concluded. 

But what if the car had been a rental—should the desk clerk or even the CEO of the company be held responsible? Should the same theory be applied to gun dealers—no gun, no murder? Where does the chain of responsibility begin and end?

16 Comments

What do you think? Leave a comment

• March 20, 2008 by terrance tattrie

  If the guy who lent his car out knew what it was going to be used for, then yes he is just as guilty as the trigger man. If not then this is ridiculous.

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  • March 21, 2008 by Lisa Staley

    I agree. It's a no brainer.

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    • March 21, 2008 by Dani O'Malley

      If he knew -- he's just as responsible, if not more so, for enabling them to do it for free. If he didn't know, then the poor guy needs a new lawyer, and the judge needs to reassess whether he allows common sense or politics to rule the court.

  • January 16, 2012 by April

    I don't believe the car owner should be just as responsible as the actual criminal. That's really pushing it! Further, if you lend your car to someone, how in the world would you actually know what he/she was going to get involved in? Even if Ryan actually knew, he did NOT participate in any crime.

    I have read of people hiring someone to kill their spouse so they'd get the insurance money. That person is evil, of course, but did not kill anyone. The hired killer ALWAYS had the opportunity to say "no" or to change his mind. Similarly, Ryan's friends had free will to say no, or to not commit any crimes.

    No person should be held accountable for what someone else does.

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• March 22, 2008 by Ann

  I suggest people click the link and read the article. Following the legal logic used, had the mother of the victim not had a safe full of dope there would have been no murder. The man whose car was used had lent the car many times and had no knowledge there was to be a burglary or murder. But the law (not in use in other countries) says his car, his crime. Absurd. Many years ago someone stole a vehicle of mine for a joy ride and a passenger was killed. The girl's parents sued me. Maybe they should have sued my mother for giving birth. No me, no car to steal. That's the logic used here...he owned a car used to get to a crime. Suppose the murderers had taken a taxi?

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• March 22, 2008 by S. Wade

  I agree with the others who said that this man did not deserve to be prosecuted and found guilty of a crime he didn't commit unless he knew that it was going to happen. This is a perfect example of misjustice. This is just the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard of. So if I go out of town and allow a friend to use my house while I'm gone and he/she commits a crime in my house, that means I'm just as guilty by association?! HAH! The next thing you know we will be prosecuted and found guilty of a crime our neighbor commits just because we live in the same neighborhood or building. C'mon, people let's get real here! We are supposed to be adults, yet we act like kids, trying to put the blame anywhere but where it belongs!

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• March 31, 2008 by Steve Lord

  And OJ went free. Prosecuters get paid to prosecute... they go after the conviction even if common sense is screaming foul.

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• April 30, 2008 by Mia

  Our world is going to hades in a hand basket man. This is positively absurd. If he was knowledgeable of the intent to commit a crime then he should be charged same as the actual crooks. If he's just a dopey friend loaning a car and got suckered then I think the thought of knowing such should be enough punishment. His problem in the case was probably, and I'm just speculating, that he was not about to prove, beyond reasonable doubt, that he was unaware of the purpose for his friends borrowing his car. And ANN is absolutely right. Following this line of logic, the mother should have been charged as well and even to a stronger degree. Valuable lesson to be learned here though...never let people use your ride!

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• May 3, 2008 by B. Ruble

  When you read the article that goes along with this blog you will see that the person serving time knew that his friends were going to commit a criminal act and was even in on the conversation about maybe having to "take out" the girl who got killed. He is getting his just punishment. But I also agree with the other posts, the mother of the girl should have been arrested and should hold as much responsibility as the rest of the group since she was the dealer.

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• September 4, 2008 by Raymond Kelly McElhiney II

  Are you One Hundred percent sure that's the whole story? I think, that guy knew about the crime to be committed. That's just stupid to think if you loan your car to somebody and they pick up other people (with out your knowledge) and they commit a crime your at fault too. Does the author of this article have the Court Transcripts? If you get a bank loan for a house and you kill somebody and buries them in his back yard. Is the banker at fault too? NO! But Yes if you tell him you will do it after purchase and he doesn't go to the authorities. Lets not forget that the prosecutors job is to put everybody in jail. Even YOU! Thanks

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• December 27, 2008 by

  Making the owner of a loaned vehicle responsible for what the driver he loaned the car to does, is absurd. It has nothing to do about justice. It is about finding someone to take some money from. They might as well frisk the bank accounts of any witnesses as well. The person responsible is the person who did the deed. If the deed is murder, loaning the car is not the deed.

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• February 8, 2009 by stacy gregory

  If I loan my car to someone and they do not have a license and I didn't know it...I am responsible...If I use someone else's car and it is not totally legal...I am responsible... I think this guys lawyers should have asked President Bush for amnesty or to commute his sentence...but they didn't...Is there a reason? In the actual article that I just read for clarification reasons...It states that Holle said "he thought they were going to get food...They talked about robbing this drug dealer but he blew it off as a joke"...Well...Hind sight would have been wonderful at this moment...BUT there was none... Do I think the sentence was tooooo steep...YYESSS!!! Do I hold him partially responsible, perhaps, but his sentence was too steep. Read the actual article by typing in Ryan Holle murder in Florida and you might get a better understanding of what is actually going on...It really helped me to decide not just to be angry and judgmental against the prosecution!!

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• February 8, 2009 by David Hood

  When I first read this article, my reaction was No Way! But as with most things the article doesn't give all the facts. Obviously the prosecution gave more evidence to the jury than this article gives us. Once we get all the facts, it becomes more apparent that Ryan is more complicit in the crime than he or the article would have us believe. If you lend a gun to someone knowing full well that they plan on murdering someone with it, you are also culpable and should be charged. The punishment, however, is in my opinion, too excessive. We have people in this country that murder and get out in 25 years or less. No possibility of parole for Ryan is way over the top

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• September 27, 2010 by Victoria

  My theory is if they want to put Ryan in jail for life then they should do the same to the mother who had the drugs in the safe to begin with.

  "No drugs, no murder."

  But she only served 3 years.

  I grew up with this guy.....the idea that lending your car to some friends could get you a life sentence is absurd. And to the idiots who think they aren't getting the whole story and that he knew what the others were going to do....there was never enough evidence to suggest that he knew.....

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• November 9, 2010 by Latia

  I personallu think that is not fair to charge someone who didnt have anything to do with the crime. I mean if i let someone hold my car "because they needed it" and i didnt know there intent. How can i be responible for someone else actions.

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