Good Samaritan law

First Aid & CPR Nicaragua

The Good Samaritan: compassion and protection

Drawn from the Bible (Luke 10:25-37), the parable of the Good Samaritan tells of a traveller left for dead who is rescued by a stranger that tends to him and sees to his care. Beyond its religious context, it carries a universal message: the moral duty to help others in danger, through compassion and altruism.

Inspired by this principle, many so-called Good Samaritan laws have been enacted around the world to protect those who assist in good faith during an emergency from legal action. The exact scope of that protection, however, varies from one jurisdiction to another: here is what the law applicable to your region provides.

Statute citation

Governing act Penal Code (Law No. 641 of 2008), art. 161 "Omisión de auxilio" (failure to render aid): "Quien omita prestar el auxilio necesario a una persona desamparada y en peligro manifiesto y grave, cuando tuviera posibilidad de hacerlo sin riesgo personal o de terceros..." — Anyone who fails to render the necessary aid to a helpless person in manifest and grave danger, when able to do so without personal risk or risk to third parties.
Scope of protection General duty to render necessary aid to a helpless person in manifest and grave danger, without personal risk or risk to others. Aggravated forms: anyone who finds a lost or abandoned child or incapacitated person whose life is in imminent danger and fails to help (2 to 4 years' prison); reduced penalty (3 to 6 months, or 6 months to 1 year if negligent) where the bystander accidentally caused the danger; additional penalty for the victim's legal guardian; denial of health care (2 to 4 years' prison).
Duty to rescue Yes
Penalty for failure to assist Fine of 100 to 500 day-fines for the basic omission; imprisonment of 2 to 4 years in aggravated cases (child/incapacitated person in imminent danger, denial of health care).
AED liability protection No
Legal duty to rescue applies

Your protection under the law

Nicaragua's Penal Code (Law 641 of 2008) makes failure to render aid an offence in its article 161, aimed not at the person who helps but at the one who, able to act without risk to self or others, abstains. By conditioning the duty on the absence of risk, the law shields the Nicaraguan who helps in good faith: their act is precisely the conduct the legal order calls for.

Duty to rescue

In Nicaragua, helping is a legal duty, not mere courtesy: the basic omission draws a fine of one hundred to five hundred days, and aggravated forms — failing to help a child or incapacitated person whose life is in imminent danger, or denying medical care — can lead to two to four years in prison. The scale of penalties speaks volumes: the more defenceless the person in danger, the more severely the law rebukes indifference.

Why training matters

Meeting that demand effectively is a matter of preparation. Faced with a drowning, a choking or a cardiac arrest, the first minutes allow no doubt and no rehearsal. Learning CPR and first aid lets a Nicaraguan act with method where the law asks for action, and sustain a life — a child's, a neighbour's, a stranger's — until professional care arrives. To train is to honour that duty with capable hands.