Maritime Injury Attorney Blog

Arrest May be Imminent in George Smith Disappearance Case

Wed, 16 May 2012 17:42:13 -0500

I have previously discussed that my firm represented the parents of George Smith, who disappeared during his honeymoon cruise aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, the Brilliance of the Seas in June of 2005.

I, along with the parents, went on a relentless mission to try to gather evidence to help solve the mystery. We faced many roadblocks, the main one being the cruise line's reluctance to share information with the Smith family about what happened to their son. The F.B.I. was not allowed to share information as it was always described as an ongoing investigation. The Smith family became very disappointed and disillusioned, and extremely frustrated.

In the meantime, the cruise ship company secretly entered into a settlement agreement with George Smith's wife, Jennifer Hagel Smith. The settlement initially was reached without the participation of myself or the Smith family, and was another significant roadblock hit by the Smith family because it denied them the best opportunity to gather important information, which was the discovery process that was going to take place during a wrongful death lawsuit. The Smith family didn't give up and decided to challenge the settlement agreement the cruise line company had negotiated with the wife. After a long legal battle in the probate court in Connecticut, the cruise line settled with the Smith family and with Jennifer Hagel Smith for a settlement over $1 million, as well as an agreement to provide some additional information that they previously had not agreed to release to the Smith family.

The case still remained a mystery, and the Smith family still was advised that the case was an open investigation with the F.B.I.

I received a call today from somebody from the Today Show advising that the F.B.I. was making an arrest in the case based on a recorded statement that had been obtained. I don't have any further details at this moment.

The delay in any arrest taking place in this matter has been attributed to the inadequate investigation that took place at the time of the reported disappearance being discovered. There were allegations that the cruise ship's actions in the aftermath of learning of the disappearance interfered with an appropriate investigation, and valuable evidence was lost. In addition, the issues regarding who had jurisdiction to conduct the investigation was also a factor in the delay of the F.B.I. getting involved.

Following the disappearance there were Congressional Hearings held which addressed crimes and disappearances aboard cruise ships, how to deal with preventing them, as well as reporting of them and appropriate investigation procedures in order to properly preserve evidence. I testified as an invited maritime expert.

As soon as more details are released regarding an arrest, I will report on it.

Cruise Ship Companies Getting Strict About Safety Drill After Costa Concordia Disaster

Wed, 16 May 2012 17:38:14 -0500

Cruise ships are finally showing improvements in their safety measures since the Costa Concordia disaster, as can be seen in an article published earlier today in USA today titled "Elderly cruiser kicked off Seabourn ship for skipping drill."

An 84-year- old woman, along with her 90-year-old husband, was kicked off the Seabourn Sojourn this week. The woman refused to attend the mandatory safety drill that begins at the start of each cruise. According to the article, this was the second leg of a three-part trip for the couple, who had already attended a safety drill on the earlier part of the trip. The husband attended the drill but the wife claimed she was not feeling well.

This was not the first incident reflecting stricter cruise ship policies. At the end of January, Holland America kicked a passenger off its ship for the same reason. The stricter policies follow the Costa Concordia disaster. On that ship, there were almost 700 passengers who had not attended a safety drill practice. Thirty two deaths occurred as result of the capsizing of the cruise ship.

As stated in the USA today article, "under rules established by the International Maritime Organization, a United Nations agency, passenger ships must hold passenger safety drills within 24 hours of embarkation. After the accident, major cruise lines around the world announced they always will hold safety drills immediately after embarkation before ships set sail." Before the Costa Concordia, some companies waited until after the ship already starting the cruise, as was the case with Costa cruises and the Concordia.

Our Miami based maritime lawyers assist crew and passengers who have been harmed at sea.

The Cruise Ship Salute Continues

Wed, 16 May 2012 11:58:49 -0500

It was recently reported in Rome that cruise ships are being asked to resume their ''sail-by salutes.'' It stopped after the Costa Concordia disaster, which occurred while the captain was carrying out a "salute" in January of this year. According to an article published in the Telegraph titled "Calls for cruise ship 'sail by salutes' to resume after Costa Concordia tragedy," salutes should be allowed ''safely and securely as it was fundamental to the tourist trade which Italy relies upon, especially in the summer, when it has more than 40 million visitors a year." According to the article, tourism chiefs and hotel bosses are making this request to the cruise industry. They let some time pass since the tragic disaster and are now requesting this practice be resumed.

After the Costa disaster, cruise ships have been criticized for a practice that appears to be more common than was known when we first learned of the Costa Concordia disaster. The cruise ship company, Costa, continues to deny the captain had the permission to do the "salute" or that it was common practice. Notwithstanding the tragedy that occurred with the capsizing of the Costa Concordia, the President of the Federation of Hotel owners of Ischia ,Ermando Mennella, said that "the inchino (salute) should be allowed to continue but obviously with safety and security guaranteed for all. It is fundamental for tourism especially to an island like Ischia and if it does not continue then it will have severe economic repercussions and cost jobs in the long run. For many years now cruise ships and mega yachts have been sailing past Ischia, which has helped promote our island in times of economic crisis and last summer alone more than 7,500 cruise ship passengers came ashore."

The defense of the salute maneuver comes after Italian maritime regulations have restricted the cruise ships to no closer than five nautical miles to shore.

After the Costa incident, CEO Pierluigi Foschi also defended salutes, saying it is a necessary part of cruising and benefits the cruise experience. He forgets 32 people are dead because of this salute and two bodies are still missing from the tragic capsizing.

The towing of the Costa Concordia will start next month. It will cost more than 300 million dollars. In addition Costa Cruises just released a new ship called the Costa Fascinosa. I hope they will figure out a way to make the cruise enjoyable, and to showcase the island of Ischia without jeopardizing the lives of thousands.

Our firm continues to act as safety advocates for those harmed at sea. We are maritime lawyers based in Miami, Florida, and handle all types of cruise ship and boating incidents.

Mobile Debt Problem

Wed, 16 May 2012 10:30:30 -0500

I recently blogged about the boom in cruising and Fox news reported on an interesting issue on Monday titled "Cruise failure leaves Mobile with looming debt." This article highlights the effect one cruise company can have on a city! Carnival Cruise lines stopped going to this seven year old terminal in Mobile, Alabama last year. They relocated their ship to New Orleans. As a result, the city of Mobile was left with a debt problem. According to the article they are faced with a big economic problem, "How to pay for a more than $20 million passenger terminal that's now used for dances and weddings rather than tourist embarkations." For the years that the cruises were coming to this port, the parking charges and other fees by the cruisers helped pay about 2 million per year for this terminal. At the end of the current fiscal year these funds will no longer exist. This is going to leave Mobile with some financial issues. They either need to get a new cruise ship to come to this port or find out another way to use his 65,000 building. The manager Sheila Gurganus is trying to promote the city and this terminal. To pay the utility bills she is currently renting out this building. Starting October 1 the bill will go to the city. According to the spokeswoman for the city, "Barbara Drummond, said officials aren't sure how to pay the mortgage on the 7-year-old terminal when the bill starts going to the city on Oct. 1." They are trying to get a cruise company to come back to Mobile. According to the article if this fails, an additional 1 cent sales tax may be necessary. The problem Mobile faces according to Carolyn Brown, a cruise industry watcher, is "inadequate marketing...The domestic cruise industry is getting more competitive as companies relocate ships overseas, and Mobile has not done enough to promote itself as a potential home port or destination".

One thing for sure cruise ship companies are welcomed by most places because of the big bucks they bring to the economy. This is why the industry is so powerful in Congress. It is hard to get laws passed to hold the industry more accountable because of the fear the industry will place their operations overseas and deny the local United States ports the huge economic benefits the cruise lines bring to the ports they utilize. In fact, when I spoke in the United States Congress about the need for safety reforms in the cruise ship industry, addressing crimes and disappearances on cruise ships, a Florida congressman attacked me by saying the cruise line industry brought a lot of money to the state of Florida. I guess he was suggesting they have friends in Congress, leave them alone. However the poor crewmembers that are overworked and underpaid on the cruise ships need a friend in Congress, not an enemy. Passengers who are injured on a cruise ship, and the family members who have lost a loved one a cruise ship, need a friend in Congress. Instead, the cruise ship companies continue to enjoy very favorable laws, and continue to whittle down the rights of passengers and crewmembers with a stroke of a pen by contracting out of liability for all than can get away with.

Our Miami based admiralty law firm is focused on helping those who need it, victims harmed at sea, passengers and crewmembers.

Disappointed Salvage Company Has to Return Treasure to Spain

Wed, 16 May 2012 09:58:57 -0500

Today I read an interesting article on expatica.com titled, "US Supreme Court refuses appeal over ship treasure." (need link) A Florida company found silver and gold on a sunken vessel from Spain but on Monday was ordered by the US Supreme Court to return the treasure. According to the article, "releasing the treasure to the Florida company would be inconsistent with a 1902 treaty between the United States and Spain." In February, a Federal court ruling in Atlanta said the ship was the property of Spain. The ship sunk in 1804 as a result of a battle with British ships near the Straits of Gibraltar. The sunken ship called the "Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes" was found in May 2007 in the Atlantic Ocean about 518 meters under water

Odyssey Marine Exploration is the Salvage specialist which found the treasure. In addition to refusing to grant this final appeal to the Florida company, the court also refused an appeal from Peru, which tried to prevent the treasure from going back to Spain. Odyssey Marine Exploration found around $500 million in gold and silver objects, making it, according to the article, the "most valuable find in history." The treasure has already been returned back to Spain.

Well, easy come, easy go!

Our Miami based maritime firm has been handling disputes involving the law of the sea for 30 years.

Cruise Ship Law News Update

Tue, 15 May 2012 17:27:44 -0500

Some recently interesting developments in the maritime law field.

It was reported that there was a large settlement reached in the case involving a Philadelphia duck boat that was involved in a collision in the Delaware River. The collision caused the boat to sink in the year 2010, killing two Hungarian students who drowned when the amphibious watercraft sank after being struck by a 250-foot barge that was being pushed by a tugboat. The case was pending in a federal court where the owners of the vessels were seeking to take advantage of an outdated and harsh maritime law called Limitation of Liability. The owners of the vessels were seeking to limit their exposure to the value of the vessels after the collision, which was reported to be approximately $1.8 million. However, the settlement is reported to have been $17 million.

The Limitation of Liability law was enacted more than 150 years ago, and remains part of the maritime law of the United States. This federal statute simply has no place in today's maritime world. The Limitation of Liability Act (LOLA) was brought into focus after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion incident that killed nine maritime workers. This ancient and archaic law allows the vessels to limit their liability to the post-voyage value of their vessel. Transocean was relying on LOLA to limits its liability for the Deepwater disaster to $27 million.

In the case involving the duck boat, the amphibious vessel was plowed over by a 250-foot barge being pushed by a tugboat in Philadelphia, and the owners were trying to limit their liability to $1.7 million.

The application of the Limitation of Liability Act results in harsh consequences, and hopefully our Congress will recognize this at some point in time.

Princess Cruises Sued for Failing to Assist Distress Boaters

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:26:47 -0500

On April 23, I wrote about how in March boaters in distress were ignored by the Star Princess.

One of the boaters, an 18-year-old named Adrian Vasquez, survived after 28 days at sea but his two friends died, one only hour after the cruise ship passed. Today it is being reported that the one survivor has filed a lawsuit against Princess Cruise lines for failing to assist, and just driving by.

In the lawsuit it is stated that several passengers aboard the cruise ship spotted the fishermen and notified a crewmember. Despite this information, the cruise sailed on. Vasquez supposedly waved a red T-shirt in hopes of getting attention from the cruise ship. He was clearly in distress. The engine of his fishing boat had failed.

Edna Ramos, the lawyer of Vasquez, says they have proof from witnesses that the cruise ship ignored the fishermen in distress. The lawsuit has been filed in Florida. Based on maritime law, "able vessels must assist those distressed at sea." Princess cruises is defending themselves saying the captain was never notified. According to a statement they released, "because of what we suspect was a case of unfortunate miscommunication, regretfully the captain of the Star Princess was never notified of the passengers' concern. Had he been advised, he would have had the opportunity to respond, as he has done numerous times throughout his career." What does not make sense is how the captain was never notified yet passengers informed a crewmember of the boaters in distress. According to a CNN article, "Vasquez's lawsuit seeks compensation for physical, emotional and psychological injuries that it alleges he suffered as a result of the conduct of cruise line employees."

Ex Cruise Ship Employee Off To Prison For Sexual Acts Committed On Minors On Cruise Ship

Mon, 14 May 2012 16:17:09 -0500

I have written about the former child supervisor, Paul Trotter, who admitted to police that he sexually abused children onboard the cruise ships he worked for and was arrested in February for these actions.Trotter worked for Cunard Cruise lines and today the 34-year-old man starts his four year sentence for the crime he committed.

Also according to USA TODAY, "The Daily Echo of Southampton, England reports that Paul Trotter of Pontefract, England also will be placed on the U.K.'s sex offenders' register for life and banned from working with children." He admitted to sexual assaulting 13 year old boys between the years of 2007 and 2011. He also admitted to "taking, making and possession of indecent images of the children, who were between the ages of 7 and 13." It is still confusing how he was able to commit these disgusting crimes without detection. According to the president and managing director of Cunard Cruise lines Peter Shanks, they will be changing their recruitment process for youth centers onboard their ships. Maybe something they should have realized much earlier!

Conclusion to the Sexual Predator Found Aboard the Norwegian Cruise Lines

Thu, 10 May 2012 16:36:36 -0500

In March I wrote a blog about an assistant cruise director for Norwegian Cruise Lines on board the cruise ship Norwegian Star who was arrested for having sexual relations with a 16-year-old passenger. Senad Djedovic, a 29-year-old crewmember, was also found in possession of graphic photos the girl sent him and videos of child pornography. Yesterday the Tampa Bay Tribune informed us that Djedovic has agreed to plead guilty to a federal pornography charge. Senad Djedovic faces up to ten years in federal prison after he agrees to this federal charge of possessing child pornography. On Monday a plea agreement was filed in United States District Court. Djedovic met this 16-year-old girl from Minnesota on a seven-day cruise that went from Tampa to the Caribbean on January 29. It was discovered that the two had a sexual encounter on a staircase and Djedovic was aware of the young girl's age. After the cruise ended they continued with a relationship via emails which included "naughty photos."

Djedovic's crime was discovered after he showed some of his crew members the pictures he received from the 16-year-old passenger.

Our Miami based maritime firm continues to be safety advocates for those harmed at sea and continues to warn parents taking young children on cruise ships not to let their guard down and to closely supervise their children during the cruise.

I previously testified in Congress about safety and security concerns on cruise ships. The hearings led to more hearings and passage of the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act signed into law by President Obama.

New Safety Measures Resulting from the Costa Disaster

Mon, 07 May 2012 15:28:29 -0500

On Saturday, the Italian cruise line Costa Crociere SpA announced new safety measures that would now be enforced on their ships. The cruise line will now "have real-time tracking of its ships' routes and will impose limits on its captains' absolute authority." These new safety measures are a direct response to the disaster in January with the Costa Concordia which killed 32 people. A major complaint of those aboard the Costa Concordia was that they had not received safety evacuation training to prepare them for any potential emergency. Now the Costa cruise line says it plans to give the training before the passengers even board the ship and that they will keep track of those who miss the training, offering make-up sessions to ensure everyone is prepared. In addition, Costa Concordia captain Francisco Schettino has been blamed for delaying the evacuation alarm in regards to when the lifeboats could be lowered. With then new safety measures, the captain will not be the only one able to issue the order.

Members of the captain's team will also participate in the decision. In addition, because as a result of the fact the Costa Concordia was directed so close to shore, an unauthorized diversion according to Costa, Costa said it was launching a fleet-wide monitoring system that allows the company to follow the routes of its vessels in real-time and pinpoint the exact location of each ship to detect any unexpected changes in course.

These safety measures were released at the same time Costa announced its newest 670-million addition, the Costa Fascinosa. This is now the largest Italian cruise ship, holding 3,800 passengers. In October another ship to join the Costa fleet will be built, holding up to 4,928 passengers. According to the Costa chairman and chief executive Pier Luigi Foschi, the newest Costa ship was needed to help the company in its recovery from their disaster in January. According to Foschi, "Costa has bounced back and booking volumes are back to the same levels recorded this time last year, ahead of our own expectations." Two bodies still remain unaccounted for from the Costa disaster and cleanup operations have begun. To read more about this matter, please see this article

Cruise Ships The Subject of Al Qaeda Planned Attack

Tue, 01 May 2012 16:21:56 -0500

Daunting news recently surfaced in regards to al Qaeda plans in a CNN article posted yesterday titled "Documents reveal al Qaeda's plans for seizing cruise ships, carnage in Europe." Through investigations obtained from an Austrian last year, it has been discovered that the terrorist group had plans to seize cruise ships. On May 16 of last year, an Austrian man named Maqsood Lodin was investigated by police in Berlin. The police found in his underpants memory cards and a digital storage device. After several weeks of trying to encode what was in these devices, the German investigators discovered over 100 al Qaeda documents which included some of their plans for future attacks. This included plots to seize cruise ships and initiate attacks in Europe.

Also discovered in these devices were terrorist training manuals. According to the CNN article, "one source says that they are the most important haul of al Qaeda materials in the last year, besides those found when U.S. Navy SEALs raided Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, a year ago and killed the al Qaeda leader."

Yassin Musharbash was the first to report on this incident in Germany. He stated how the documents said they would seize the cruise ship and use this action to pressure the public. Musharbash interpreted this to mean that "the terrorists would then start executing passengers on those ships and demand the release of particular prisoners. The plan would include dressing passengers in orange jump suits, as if they were al Qaeda prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, and then videotaping their execution."

Lodin and another man named Yusuf Ocak, who was traveling back to Europe with Lodin, are both on trial in Berlin. They are both pleading not guilty. They both had been on a watch list, which led to their capture. The prosecutors believe that Lodin and Ocak met at a terrorist training camp in Pakistan and were going back to Europe to scout out suicide bombers. This kind of attack, as scary as it sounds, had occurred before. 25 years ago the PLO hijacked a cruise ship, killing an American on board.

Titanic Replica

Tue, 01 May 2012 16:08:55 -0500

In an interesting article published yesterday by CNN, it stated that an Australian billionaire had plans to build a replica of the Titanic. The difference was that the new ship would contain modern technology which would prevent the disaster which had occurred 100 years ago. The Queensland mining billionaire Cliva Palmer had commissioned SCS Jinling Shipyard to accomplish this task. The building would start next year, making the ship ready to sail by 2016 from London to New York. "It will be every bit as luxurious as the original Titanic but of course it will have state-of-the-art 21st century technology and the latest navigation and safety systems," Palmer said in a statement.

Revenge?

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:23:11 -0500

In December of 2011, Patricia Elkins, 47, pleaded guilty to a bomb threat she made towards a cruise ship in June of that same year. Elkins, who is from Arkansas, called Carnival Cruise Lines to anonymously inform them that there was a bomb on one of their ships en route to Cozumel, Mexico. There were two ships, each with about 3,000 people aboard, which were immediately informed of this threat. A bomb was not found but police were able to track down Patricia Elkins who at first denied making the threat. She then later admitted that she called in the threat. Elkins told police that she was upset with a man she was living with at the time who was aboard one of the ships. She was mad at the man for not including her in his trip. This was a little too extreme for revenge.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kirk Schoenbein tried to get her a strict sentence, "citing the number of people affected, some 7,000 aboard two ships, and the time and effort spent by crew members to investigate the threat. The prosecutor also noted that Elkins had called in a threat in 2003 to a high school in Bloomington but wasn't prosecuted." Yesterday, Patricia Elkins was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison.

Seamen Can Recover Punitive Damages in an Unseaworthiness Claim

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 16:18:39 -0500

When a seaman suffers a personal injury during the scope of his employment, he can bring a negligence action under the Jones Act against his employer. He also can bring an action against the shipowner for unseaworthiness. Unseaworthiness is a legal term, but in the context of a claim by a seaman, means that something aboard the vessel was not reasonably fit for its intended use. This can include a procedure at work or a job method. It can include assigning too few persons to a particular job task. It is a form of strict liability.

Previously, the Supreme Court had decided the case of Miles vs. Apex Marine Corp., which dealt with the damages available to a seaman in a wrongful death case. The Supreme Court ruled the damages needed to be uniform between the Jones Act and general maritime law in a wrongful death case, and denied loss of society damages to the spouse of the seaman who died.

Following the Miles decision, there were decisions questioning the availability of punitive damages to a seaman under the general maritime law.

Recently, the Supreme Court of the United States decided the case of Atlantic Sounding Co. Inc. v. Townsend, ruling that punitive damages can be extended to general maritime law claims unless a specific act of Congress had been enacted stating otherwise. In Townsend, the seaman was allowed to pursue his claim for punitive damages for failure to provide maintenance and cure.

In a recent decision of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, the court, utilizing the logic of the Townsend case, and ruled that a seaman can recover punitive damages under the general maritime law for the unseaworthiness of the ship.

Another Fire Aboard a Ship?

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 17:22:40 -0500

Friday night "a small and short-lived engine fire" occurred aboard Royal Caribbean's Allure of the Seas. The ship was on its way back to Port Everglades from St Maarten when the fire broke out at about 7:45 p.m. The fire was immediately extinguished and no injuries were reported. In addition, the fire did not delay the voyage. Sadly this is not the first time this has occurred. During a hearing before the U.S. Senate last month following the Costa Concordia disaster, Ross A. Klein, PhD, who is a leading authority in the cruise area, testified saying that since 1990, 79 cruise ships have experienced a fire. Only a month ago another Royal Caribbean Cruise the Azamara Quest experienced a fire in its engine room which disabled the ship. In addition, the Costa Allegra also experienced a fire which left it floating in the middle of the Indian Ocean until it could be towed to the Seychelles.

Although none of the fires discussed above resulted in serious injuries or deaths, this is not always the case. Our firm previously represented the families from the Scandinavian Star who lost loved ones in a fire aboard a cruise ship. 159 people died.

As disasters happen, more safety rules and policies get developed. Sadly, it takes a disaster for the cruise line industry to act. Today, CNN travel reported that the cruise ship industry has adopted new safety policies in response to the Costa Concordia disaster.

In 2010 president Obama signed into law the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act this large was in large part spearheaded by a series of congressional hearings addressing cruise ship safety concerns which came to light after the disappearance of George Smith during his honeymoon cruise. My firm represented the family of George Smith. I also spoke at the congressional hearings as a maritime legal expert.

Our firm acts as safety advocates for those harmed at sea.