Senate to Act on Killer Ship Incident

The dream of many boat owners is to chuck it all and sail around the world. However, real nightmares can happen, especially on the high seas. Legislation now making its way through Congress could bring some closure for the lone survivor of one such nightmare as well as provide some legal recourse for recreational boaters who venture offshore.

The genesis of this legislation began four-and-a-half years ago when BOAT/U.S. members Judith and Michael Sleavin and their two children, Benjamin, 9, and Annie, 7, were two years into a circumnavigation and 30 miles off New Zealand's Bay of Islands. At 0212 on the morning of Nov. 24, 1995, they were run over in their 47-foot sailboat by a Korean freighter. Benjamin was killed on impact but Judith, Michael and Annie survived the collision in their inflatable dinghy only to witness the following. According to Judith Sleavin, "The ship circled back, the crew staring down at us, we yelled, 'Help us,' but the ship took off into the night."

Michael Sleavin and his daughter, Annie, subsequently perished at sea. Judith Sleavin miraculously survived the ordeal after spending 42 hours in the cold water and 20-foot seas, and 20 hours awaiting rescue after she was washed ashore on an uninhabited island.

But Judith Sleavin's nightmare had only just begun. After proving the identity of this killer ship she was forced to settle out of court in part because she didn't have the financial resources to take on a foreign shipping company -- but also because of a 1920s U.S. law known as the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA).

This law, which takes effect three miles offshore and was intended for merchant seamen, basically limits a person's ability to recover damages to "pecuniary" (monetary) losses for a wage earner only. In other words, while her husband's life had a value under DOHSA, the lives of her children and her pain and suffering have no value. Had she died and one of her children lived, her life would have had no value because she was a homemaker.

To correct this injustice, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) has been pushing an amendment to the Federal Aviation Administration's authorization bill, S. 82, which would eliminate this arbitrary rule for recreational boaters and allow survivors to sue for up to $750,000. BOAT/U.S. has been actively working with Wyden to get this legislation approved. Interestingly, the victims of airplane crashes like TWA flight #800, who die offshore, are also subject to the DOHSA limits.

Meanwhile, the Pan Ocean Shipping Co., Ltd., the owners of the freighter, the Pan Grace (now the Pan Leader), have denied any wrongdoing and have issued no apology.

BOAT/U.S. members who wish to get involved in this legislative battle should log on to www.boatus.com and go to the Government Affairs section for up-to-date information. For more information on Judith Sleavin and what she is doing to promote boating safety, consult www.sleavin.org. The cover story of last February's issue of Sail magazine should be read by anyone who would like an in-depth account of this incident.