Maritime Law & The Criminalization of Maritime Violations and Offenses - Important
Copyright 2007 - Copyright Warning - Violators Will Be Prosecuted
Rights reserved - U.S. Copyright Law Carries Criminal & Civil Penalties for Infringement -
17 U.S.C. § 506 and 18 U.S.C. § 2319
Copyright 2007 - Copyright Warning - Violators Will Be Prosecuted
Rights reserved - U.S. Copyright Law Carries Criminal & Civil Penalties for Infringement -
17 U.S.C. § 506 and 18 U.S.C. § 2319
| U.S. Department of Labor - These are contact numbers for Dept of Labor Offices that maintain regional employment, unemployment, wage information. ALASKA - Juneau, AK - (907) 465-4518 ARIZONA - Phoenix, AZ - (602) 542-3871 ARKANSAS - Little Rock, AR - (501) 682-4500 CALIFORNIA - Sacramento, CA - (916) 262-2160 COLORADO - Denver, CO - (303) 318-8898 CONNECTICUT - Wethersfield, CT - (860) 263-6255 DELAWARE - Wilmington, DE - (302) 761-8052 DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA - (202) 671-1633 GUAM - Tamuning, GU - (671) 475-7062 HAWAII - Honolulu, HI - (808) 586-8996 IDAHO - Boise, ID - (800) 772-2553 ILLINOIS - Chicago, IL - (312) 793-2316 INDIANA - Indianapolis, IN - (317) 232-7460 IOWA - Des Moines, IA - (515) 281-0255 KANSAS - Topeka, KS - (785) 296-5058 KENTUCKY - Frankfort, KY - (502) 564-7976 LOUISIANA - Baton Rouge, LA - (225) 342-3141 MAINE - Augusta, ME - (207) 287-2271 MARYLAND - Baltimore, MD - (410) 767-2250 MASSACHUSETTS - Boston, MA - (617) 626-6556 MICHIGAN - Detroit, MI - (313) 456-3090 MINNESOTA - St. Paul, MN - (651) 282-2714 MISSISSIPPI - Jackson, MS - (601) 321-6261 MISSOURI - Jefferson City, MO - (573) 751-3609 |
NEVADA - Carson City, NV - (775) 684-0387 NEW HAMPSHIRE - Concord, NH - (603) 228-4123 NEW JERSEY - Trenton, NJ 08625 - 609 292-0099 NEW MEXICO - Albuquerque, NM - (505) 222-4683 NEW YORK - Albany, NY - (518) 457-6369 NORTH CAROLINA - Raleigh, NC - (919) 733-2936 NORTH DAKOTA - Bismarck, ND - (701) 328-2868 OHIO - Columbus, OH - (614) 752-9494 OKLAHOMA - Oklahoma City, OK - (405) 557-7265 OREGON - Salem, OR - (503) 947-1212 PENNSYLVANIA - Harrisburg, PA - (717) 787-3266 PUERTO RICO Hato Rey, PR - (787) 754-5340 RHODE ISLAND - Cranston, RI - (401) 462-8767 SOUTH CAROLINA - Columbia, SC (803) 737-2660SOUTH DAKOTA - Aberdeen, SD - (605) 626-2314 TENNESSEE - Nashville, TN - (615) 741-2284 TEXAS - Austin, TX UTAH - Salt Lake City, UT - (801) 526-9401 VERMONT - Montpelier, VT - (802) 828-4153 VIRGIN ISLANDS-Charlotte Aml, VI -340 776-3700 VIRGINIA - Richmond, VA - (804) 786-7496 WASHINGTON - Lacey, WA - (360) 438-4804 WEST VIRGINIA - Charleston, WV - (304) 558-2660 WISCONSIN - Madison, WI - (608) 267-2393 WYOMING - Casper, WY - (307) 473-3807 |
| Legal & Professional Perils for the Mariner |
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Criminalization of Maritime Violations and Offenses and
Other Legal Perils for the Commercial Mariner Today
The increased level of criminal liability for one’s errors is
never far from the minds of professional mariners today.
Mariners are also aware of the publicity and subsequent
investigations involving Coast Guard administrative law
hearings, especially after one administrative law judge
testified about how she was instructed to make her
rulings. Read more about Criminal Law and the
Criminalization of the Professional Mariners' Conduct .
Professional mariners realize that they may be forced to
make split second decisions during crisis situations, and
that afterwards, those decisions could be intensely
scrutinized by judges, prosecutors, attorneys and
insurance adjustors who later have the benefit of
reviewing the situation in full hindsight, and with
voluminous technical reports analyzing what happened,
what went wrong, and what the commercial mariner
should have done instead of what he or she actually did
when everything hit the fan.
Because mariners are an honorable lot, they aren’t
usually inclined to think like criminals on the witness
stand. This is true despite an atmosphere where the
conduct of commercial seamen is increasingly subject to
criminal prosecution. Captains, mates, and other
crewmembers are generally indoctrinated to act prudently
and cautiously… doing everything in their power and
abilities to keep their crew, passengers, vessel and cargo
safe, to comply with the rules of the road, to prevent fires
on their vessels, to prevent confined space injuries, to
apply high standards of competence and seamanship in
plotting courses, to be vigilant to range settings and
targets on their radar screens, and in general, to make
sure everyone on the boat goes home to their families at
the end of the day in one piece. They also strive to do all
these things in a manner which is reasonably economical
for the owners and operators of a vessel, avoiding
unnecessary delays in schedules, regulatory agency
penalties, while cognizant of fuel consumption and
overtime expenses.
Other Legal Perils for the Commercial Mariner Today
The increased level of criminal liability for one’s errors is
never far from the minds of professional mariners today.
Mariners are also aware of the publicity and subsequent
investigations involving Coast Guard administrative law
hearings, especially after one administrative law judge
testified about how she was instructed to make her
rulings. Read more about Criminal Law and the
Criminalization of the Professional Mariners' Conduct .
Professional mariners realize that they may be forced to
make split second decisions during crisis situations, and
that afterwards, those decisions could be intensely
scrutinized by judges, prosecutors, attorneys and
insurance adjustors who later have the benefit of
reviewing the situation in full hindsight, and with
voluminous technical reports analyzing what happened,
what went wrong, and what the commercial mariner
should have done instead of what he or she actually did
when everything hit the fan.
Because mariners are an honorable lot, they aren’t
usually inclined to think like criminals on the witness
stand. This is true despite an atmosphere where the
conduct of commercial seamen is increasingly subject to
criminal prosecution. Captains, mates, and other
crewmembers are generally indoctrinated to act prudently
and cautiously… doing everything in their power and
abilities to keep their crew, passengers, vessel and cargo
safe, to comply with the rules of the road, to prevent fires
on their vessels, to prevent confined space injuries, to
apply high standards of competence and seamanship in
plotting courses, to be vigilant to range settings and
targets on their radar screens, and in general, to make
sure everyone on the boat goes home to their families at
the end of the day in one piece. They also strive to do all
these things in a manner which is reasonably economical
for the owners and operators of a vessel, avoiding
unnecessary delays in schedules, regulatory agency
penalties, while cognizant of fuel consumption and
overtime expenses.
If you read Homer's Odyssey in high school, you might remember the perils of Odysseus
as he passed the Sirens. They were beautiful creatures with the face of a woman and the
body of a bird. Their beauty and song had caused many mariners to wreck their ships on
the rocks of Sirenum scopuli. Wishing to hear the enchanted song without sentencing his
crew to a death sentence, Odysseus had himself lashed to the mast of his boat.
as he passed the Sirens. They were beautiful creatures with the face of a woman and the
body of a bird. Their beauty and song had caused many mariners to wreck their ships on
the rocks of Sirenum scopuli. Wishing to hear the enchanted song without sentencing his
crew to a death sentence, Odysseus had himself lashed to the mast of his boat.
Trivia: What is Asbestos? |
In real life, commercial mariners today face legal and administrative perils of a more
serious nature. Commercial mariners are generally aware… and if they are not, they
SHOULD be aware, that there has been an increased tendency for federal and state
prosecutors to apply criminal statutes in prosecuting violations.
serious nature. Commercial mariners are generally aware… and if they are not, they
SHOULD be aware, that there has been an increased tendency for federal and state
prosecutors to apply criminal statutes in prosecuting violations.
What this means to the working mariner is that mistakes or violations which in the past
would have subjected them to civil penalties (or money claims from lawsuits based on
negligence) could now expose them to criminal prosecution.
would have subjected them to civil penalties (or money claims from lawsuits based on
negligence) could now expose them to criminal prosecution.
| The Perils of Odysseus The painting above shows that Odysseus was deadly serious about the maritime peril of the Siren's song. Sailors were unable to resist the beauty of the Sirens' song and for reason were doomed to wreck their ships on the rocky shores of the Sirens' home islands. While such mythical perils are interesting to read about, mariners today face perils of a different nature. Besides the traditional perils of the seas, mariners today face a complex legal system that can impose stiff penalties for oil spills and other incidents. |
Jones Act Seaman
Status Significance of
Status as a Jones Act
Seaman
Jones Act Seaman Status
Status Significance of
Status as a Jones Act
Seaman
Jones Act Seaman Status
The Jones Act &
Commercial Mariners
More information about
the Jones Act
Jones Act & Comm Mariners
Commercial Mariners
More information about
the Jones Act
Jones Act & Comm Mariners
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