Bondage death sparks legal debate

'A horrible tragedy'
In his note, LeBlanc said he was “responsible for a horrible tragedy,” adding: “Had I dealt with the first crisis responsibly, he would likely have returned home safely.”

Lawyers for Exley’s estate acknowledge that Exley wanted to participate in a bondage session, but say he did not know about LeBlanc’s reputation as an “extreme edge player” in the world of bondage and sadomasochism.

“Just because you are agreeing that you will allow someone to tie you up temporarily as part of role-playing doesn’t mean that you are consenting to be killed or to be left alone or to be abused,” attorney Randy Chapman said.

Several people who came forward after Exley’s death told police that LeBlanc had restrained them and left them alone for long periods or ignored their requests that he curtail a bondage session.

Both actions go against the bondage protocols, which say participants must stop if their partner uses a prearranged “safe word” or “safe signal” and must not leave anyone who is bound alone, said Susan Wright, a spokeswoman for the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom.

Practitioner: A point where line is crossed
Brian Plant, a bondage and sadomasochism practitioner from Kansas, said: “Nobody goes into these things saying, ‘Oh, well, I’m going to die because of it.’ You reach a point when the line is crossed, and it is no longer consensual.”

Kathy Jo Cook, a lawyer who specializes in wrongful death cases, said that when you take away the sensational details of the Exley case, the claim being made by Exley’s estate is the same made in many other wrongful death cases.

“The law says if a person causes the death of another person by an act which is either negligent or reckless, that person is liable,” Cook said. “You have a duty to behave reasonably. I think it’s the same thing here, albeit a very strange set of facts.”

It was Exley’s mother, Maggie Horner, who decided to sue LeBlanc’s estate.

“We decided that we didn’t want Gary’s last wishes being granted when Adrian’s couldn’t be,” she said. “Why should Gary be able to kill my son, bury my son, shoot himself and still get his own way?”

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