{"id":2080700,"date":"2023-10-26T19:55:40","date_gmt":"2023-10-26T23:55:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/captain-or-boat-owner-lawyers-trade-blame-for-2019-fire-that-killed-34-people-as-trial-begins\/"},"modified":"2023-10-26T20:04:10","modified_gmt":"2023-10-27T00:04:10","slug":"captain-or-boat-owner-lawyers-trade-blame-for-2019-fire-that-killed-34-people-as-trial-begins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/captain-or-boat-owner-lawyers-trade-blame-for-2019-fire-that-killed-34-people-as-trial-begins\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawyers argue over blame for 2019 fire that killed 34 as trial starts."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fcaptain-or-boat-owner-lawyers-trade-blame-for-2019-fire-that-killed-34-people-as-trial-begins%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2080700&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Federal\u200b Prosecutors Hold \u200dScuba Dive Boat\u200c Captain Responsible\u200c for Deadly Fire<\/h2>\n<p>In a gripping trial\u200c unfolding in Los Angeles, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-jury-reaches-partial-verdict-in-gretchen-whitmer-kidnapping-plot-trial\/\" title=\"BREAKING: Jury Reaches Partial Verdict In Gretchen Whitmer Kidnapping Plot Trial\">federal prosecutors argued<\/a> that the captain of a scuba dive \u200cboat should be held accountable for\u2063 the tragic deaths of 34 \u2063people in a devastating fire that engulfed the vessel in\u2064 2019. The defense,\u200c however, placed the blame squarely on the boat&#8217;s \u2062owner, making this the deadliest maritime disaster in recent U.S. history.<\/p>\n<p>The trial commenced with conflicting accounts presented\u200b during the opening statements. Jerry\u2062 Boylan,\u2063 the captain, \u200dis facing charges\u200d of misconduct \u2063or \u2062neglect of a ship\u2062 officer,\u200c a\u2064 statute\u2064 known as &#8220;seaman&#8217;s manslaughter.&#8221; If convicted,\u200d Boylan could\u200d face up to 10 years in prison.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2>Related Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<h3>US Renews\u200d Warning It Will Defend Philippines After Incidents With\u2062 Chinese Vessels\u200b in South\u200d China Sea<\/h3>\n<p>10\/23\/2023<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<h3>Horse Rider \u200cDies in \u200cLos Alamitos Training\u200d Incident<\/h3>\n<p>10\/23\/2023<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Boylan,\u2063 a 70-year-old, has \u2063pleaded not \u2064guilty and vehemently denied\u2064 any wrongdoing. As the trial unfolded, \u200dfamily members of the victims filled the courtroom, listening intently to the heart-wrenching details of their \u2064loved ones&#8217; final moments. \u2062Boylan and four <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rescue-helicopter-crashes-into-florida-apartment-complex-killing-fire-captain-and-resident\/\" title=\"Florida apartment complex hit by helicopter crash, claiming lives of fire captain and resident.\">crew members managed<\/a> to survive the inferno that engulfed the Conception on September 2, 2019, while 33 passengers and a deckhand \u2064tragically perished.<\/p>\n<p>The fire on \u200dthe 75-foot boat led\u2063 to significant changes \u2064in maritime regulations, congressional reform, and civil lawsuits. Among the victims \u200bwere a new \u200ddeckhand pursuing her dream job, an \u200denvironmental scientist who conducted research\u2062 in Antarctica, a globetrotting couple, a Singaporean data\u200c scientist, and three sisters along with their father and stepmother.<\/p>\n<p>The Conception was anchored off\u2063 the\u200c Channel Islands, \u200bjust <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/israeli-experts-announce-first-discovery-of-new-dead-sea-scrolls-in-60-years\/\" title=\"Israeli Experts Announce First Discovery Of New Dead Sea Scrolls In 60 Years\">25 miles south<\/a> of Santa Barbara, when the fire \u200bbroke out before dawn on the final day of \u2062a three-day excursion. The boat sank less than \u200c100\u200c feet \u2063from \u2063the shore.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>VCFD firefighters respond to\u200d a fire aboard the Conception dive boat fire in the Santa Barbara Channel off\u200b the coast of Southern Calif., on Sept. 2, 2019. (Ventura County Fire Department via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>According to\u200b prosecutor Matthew\u2063 O&#8217;Brien, Boylan\u2062 failed to fulfill his responsibilities by neglecting to assign a roving night\u200b watchman and\u200d inadequately training the crew in \u200dfirefighting \u2063techniques.\u2063 O&#8217;Brien \u200bemphasized that as\u200d the captain, Boylan held\u2062 the lives \u2064and safety of those on board\u2062 in his hands.<\/p>\n<p>When\u2063 the fire broke out, Boylan was the first to jump overboard after \u200bmaking a distress call to the Coast Guard. Meanwhile, 34 individuals were trapped below\u2064 deck, unable to escape the suffocating smoke and raging flames.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The 34 people who were killed didn&#8217;t have a chance to jump overboard,&#8221; O&#8217;Brien \u2064told the jury.\u200c &#8220;They were waiting to be rescued. But nobody rescued \u200cthem.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>While the cause of the\u2063 fire\u2064 remains \u2063unknown, coroner&#8217;s reports attribute the victims&#8217; deaths \u2063to smoke inhalation.<\/p>\n<p>Boylan&#8217;s defense attorney, Georgina Wakefield, \u200bshifted the blame to the boat&#8217;s \u2064owner, \u2063Glen Fritzler. Fritzler, who had designed the Conception and captained the vessel for over four decades, personally trained Boylan when \u200bhe joined as a\u2063 deckhand in 1983.<\/p>\n<p>Wakefield argued that Fritzler was \u2063responsible for failing\u2062 to provide proper training \u200bin firefighting and \u200bother safety measures, creating \u2063an \u200benvironment where no captain under \u2062his employ assigned a roving watch. She\u2064 referred to this as &#8220;the Fritzler\u200b way,&#8221; \u2062highlighting that the Coast Guard had certified Truth Aquatics&#8217; records for years.<\/p>\n<p>During the fire, Wakefield claimed that Boylan was unable to reach those trapped below due \u2064to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/captain-or-boat-owner-lawyers-trade-blame-for-2019-fire-that-killed-34-people-as-trial-begins\/\" title=\"Lawyers argue over blame for 2019 fire that killed 34 as trial starts.\">intense 15-foot flames \u2063engulfing<\/a> the Conception. She emphasized that there was no way in or\u200c out \u200dfor anyone.<\/p>\n<p>As of now, Glen \u200cFritzler&#8217;s attorneys \u2063have not \u200dresponded to requests for comment. The Fritzlers have refrained from making public\u2063 statements, except for an interview \u200cwith Santa \u200cBarbara local TV station KEYT shortly after\u200d the fire, where Glen Fritzler expressed his deep \u200csadness.<\/p>\n<p>Three \u200ddays after the tragic \u200dincident, Truth Aquatics, the company owned \u2062by Glen and Dana Fritzler, filed a lawsuit in U.S. District\u200c Court\u2062 in Los Angeles,\u2062 seeking to limit their liability \u200bto the \u200dremains of \u200bthe boat \u2062under a pre-Civil War\u2062 provision of maritime law. \u2063This legal maneuver, successfully employed by the owners of the Titanic and other vessels, requires the Fritzlers\u2064 to\u2062 prove they were \u200cnot at fault. The case is still pending.<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-figure\" style=\"margin-left:0;margin-right:0;max-width:1200px\">\n<figure style=\"width:640px;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto\" class=\"alignnone\"><figcaption>The burned hull of the dive boat Conception\u2063 is brought to the\u2062 surface\u200c by\u2063 a salvage team \u200bin the Santa Barbara\u2063 Channel off \u2062Santa Cruz Island\u2064 in Southern \u2064California on Sept. 12, 2019. (Brian van der Brug\/Los Angeles Times via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>The \u200dNational Transportation Safety Board placed the blame on \u200cBoylan, stating that his failure \u2064to assign a night watchman\u200d allowed\u2063 the fire to rapidly spread \u200dunnoticed. The agency also criticized\u2064 the Coast Guard for not enforcing\u200c the requirement of a roving watchman and recommended the development of\u2064 a program to ensure boats with overnight passengers have proper\u2063 supervision.<\/p>\n<p>Victims&#8217; families have\u200b filed lawsuits against the Coast Guard as part \u2064of \u200congoing civil suits.<\/p>\n<p>Coast \u200dGuard records \u2062revealed that, at \u200bthe time of the fire, no owner, operator, or charterer had been cited or fined for failing \u200cto assign\u200c a roving patrol since 1991.<\/p>\n<p>Since the incident, the Coast Guard has implemented new regulations, mandated by Congress, regarding fire detection systems, extinguishers, \u2062and escape \u2064routes, although other measures\u200d are \u2063yet to be put in place.<\/p>\n<div class=\"my-5\"><em>By Stefanie \u200dDazio<\/em><\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<h2> How could\u2062 the outcome of this trial affect \u2062the scuba diving industry and the broader maritime community?<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Cept for a brief press conference after \u2064the incident in which they \u2064expressed \u200dtheir grief for the victims and their families. They have since maintained a low profile, leaving the legal\u200d battle to Boylan and his defense team.<\/p>\n<p>The trial is expected to continue for several weeks as both sides present their \u2062evidence and\u200c call \u2064upon\u2063 witnesses to testify. The tragic events of that fateful day in 2019 have left \u2063a \u2064lasting impact on\u200d the\u200c diving community and the families of the victims. It is hoped that through this trial, justice will\u200b be served and\u200b those responsible for the loss of 34\u200c lives will be held accountable.<\/p>\n<p>The outcome of this\u2063 trial could have far-reaching implications, not only for the scuba diving\u200d industry but also for the broader\u200b maritime community. It\u2062 serves as a reminder of the importance \u2062of upholding safety regulations and ensuring that proper training and emergency protocols are in place on all vessels. The lessons learned from this tragedy must \u200cbe used to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kamala-gif-tiff-sparks-mandatory-anti-racism-training-at-cornell\/\" title=\"Kamala GIF Tiff Sparks Mandatory \u2018Anti-Racism\u2019 Training at Cornell\">prevent similar incidents<\/a> from occurring in the future.<\/p>\n<p>As the trial unfolds, the families of the\u200d victims continue to seek closure and justice for their loved ones. They have \u2064shown \u2062tremendous strength and\u200c resilience throughout this ordeal and have\u200c become advocates\u200b for safer boating practices. Their presence in\u200b the courtroom serves as a reminder that behind every statistic \u2063and legal term, there are real lives that were\u200c lost and \u200breal families that have been forever affected.<\/p>\n<p>This trial serves as a somber reminder of the devastating consequences that can\u200d occur when negligence and \u200da lack of preparation meet tragic circumstances. It is\u2064 a tragic chapter in maritime history that \u200bshould never be\u2062 forgotten. As the trial\u200b moves forward, the \u2064world watches and waits for \u2064answers, \u2064hoping that justice \u200cwill be served and \u200bthat the memories of those\u2064 lost will be\u2064 honored.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>LOS ANGELES\u2014Federal prosecutors argue the scuba dive boat captain should be accountable for the 2019 fire that claimed 34 lives, while the defense claims the boat\u2019s owner is at fault. This dispute arises in the deadliest recent U.S. maritime tragedy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":136,"featured_media":2080701,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[543],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2080700","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-epoch-times"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2080700","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/136"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2080700"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2080700\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2080701"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2080700"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2080700"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2080700"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}