Law, Business and Society 11th Edition by Tony McAdams

Exercise 70

Obion County, Tennessee, firefighters drew national attention in 2010 and 2011 when they allowed two rural family homes to burn to the ground because the families had not paid their $75 annual subscription fee to the city-operated fire department in nearby South Fulton. Apparently, no one was seriously injured in either fire. The homeowner in the 2010 blaze, Gene Cranick, said that he offered to pay the fee on the spot, but the fire department declined and engaged the fire only to the extent necessary to protect the property of a neighbor who had paid the fee.
a. Why did the fire department decline Cranick's money at the time of the fire
b. Do you think the fire department should have extinguished the fire even though Cranick had not paid Explain.