We all know that when one murders another person, he is liable for the death penalty. However, what should be the Halacha for one whose irresponsibility causes the death of another? For example, if someone owns an ox that is known to be aggressive and has gored three times before, and he does not watch it well enough and it goes out and kills a person. Is the guardian liable to the death penalty in such a situation? Chaza”l learn out from the passuk in Parshas Masei, “The [one who killed] shall surely be killed. He is a murderer,” that only when a person himself is a murderer is he liable, but one is not liable for the killings of his ox.
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Rabbi Aharon Dovid Singer
Rosh Kollel, NMB Kollel
Director, South Florida Torah Initiative