Man Billed $143 For Rescuing Three Children, Man Trapped In Rollover Crash

This guy rescued a man and three
kids from an overturned van. He got
billed $143 because of it.  

You gotta like good Samaritans like Derrick Deanda.

As he was driving around in Elk Grove, California, not long ago, a van rolled over.

Inside were a man and three children. They were trapped.  

So Deanda busted out a window of the overturned van and got everybody out. They're all OK.

The local paramedics showed up and made sure everybody was doing OK. They checked Deanda's pulse, noted a small cut he received while he was rescuing the family, and they gave him a bottle of water.

Deanda now has to pay for his heroics because of a $143 bill he received from the Cosumnes  Community Services District, which is the local first responder outfit, says CBS Sacramento. 

All patients the first responders see are billed the $143. Deanda became a patient because the first responders looked at that small cut he had.  

It isn't exactly like the first responders spent hours trying to save Deanda's life. He was in pretty good shape to begin with.

"We're obligated to provide the same level of service, the same billing, the same everything for every patient we encounter," Deputy Chief Mike McLaughllin said.

Deanda could appeal the bill, but why should he go through the trouble? He rescued the damn family from the overturned van.

Actually, McLaughlin would like to get rid of the bill Deanda got, but he can't because he's supposed to bill everybody. "This is a truly unique situation.... In my 28 years, this is the first time I've run into a situation similar to this."

"Our desire is to make this right," McLaughlin said. But Deanda is still going to have to appeal to make that happen.

This kind of situation does seem to discourage other would-be good Samaritans, which the world desperately needs.

"I mean, why would I want to stop to help somebody if I'm going to get a bill for $150," Deanda told CBS Sacramento.