A federal judge has thrown out an indictment charging a boat captain with manslaughter in the deaths of 34 scuba divers three years ago off the California coast.
The judge scrubbed an Oct. 4 trial date.
Federal prosecutors countered that under the pre-Civil War statute, designed to hold steamboat captains and crew responsible for maritime disasters, they only needed to show Boylan acted with simple negligence, a unique standard for a felony. “When we speak to clients about potential exposure or risk under the statute, we warn them that simple negligence could be enough,” Carlson said.
Robert Weisberg, a criminal law professor at Stanford University, said Wu's ruling was sensible for relying on other appellate opinions that found gross negligence was a required element for the similar crime of involuntary manslaughter, which is also the standard in California and many state courts.
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