This could happen to any of us. Whether alcohol is related or not the "cigarette" boat is always considered to blame. It is actually kind of scary considering the near misses I have had with jet skiers with ADD, one minute they go straight then they decide to cut right in front of you.

When the Marlins won the World Series in 1997 I borrowed the "Merrymaker" to carry two players and their families in the parade up the New River in Ft. Lauderdale. We had 16 or 17 high performance boats with the Marlins on every one of them.

After the accident I begged the police to let me at least pickle the engines. Of course they refused and the case dragged-on so long that the boat was finally junk.

Where did the boat end up?

I have no idea. Last I saw both boats they were in the BSO evidence hangar at the Executive airport in Ft. Lauderdale.

Maybe I messed it, What was your friend Stan convicted of and what penalty did he git hit with? Was he sued as well? How did that turn out?

Go to post #22 and go to the link. Read my posts and if you still have questions, I'll be glad to answer any that I can.
Ed

Regardless of whether or not the captain turned to try and avoid the oncoming Sonic, 6 people including a good friend of mine died when that asshat hit them. The speeds he was actually running be it 86 or 56 was too fast for the night time conditions he was running in, and 6 innocent people died. I hope the son of a b1tch dies a painful death before he is released..

sorry for your loss, however after i read all those reports, to me it seems like captain of the sonic may not have done anything wrong, "both boats traveling north" the vessel being overtaken has the right of way and should mantain its course , where that hired on captain panicked and turned what looks like right into that sonic, like i said, sorry for your loss but i dont think that comment was needed, what if it was you in that sonic, i know it could have happend to me, you never know what someone else is thinking

I, too, am sorry for your loss. Please remember there were no "winners" in this event. I agree that those innocent people should not have died that tragic night and so does Stan Cameron.

First of all, let's talk about speed. I don't believe that speed would have been MENTIONED had Stan's boat been anything other than a loud, "Cigarette" boat. I was on poker runs with this man and I swear to you this is not somebody who takes chances EVEN DURING THE LIGHT OF DAY. There was no reason to speed excessively under the conditions that night. He was definitely on plane, but there was nothing he could have done to avoid contact when the Tiara coming toward him, also on plane, suddenly turned directly into his path. The physical evidence confirms this, but the jury was convinced that Stan was at fault completely. I was shocked that Stan's defense attorney did not stress more strongly that the prosecutions own experts agreed with the physical evidence.

Second, Stan's demeanor during the trial. The media loved portraying Stan as an arrogant, non-repentive, wealthy, playboy by digging up his past and presenting it in a negative way. Remember, Stan himself was nearly killed in the accident. The responding officers found him unconscious under the steering wheel with massive head injuries. He was in a coma and when he awoke he had no recollection of any of it. If Stan Cameron's death would bring back those 6 people, he would do it in a New York second.

The people who testified against Stan live on the ICW and want ALL boating to stop near their houses. They are like the people who build next to the airport and later complain about the noise. These people had a field day with their own agenda being in the headlines.

You are getting better than your wish as far as Stan Cameron suffering.

Not to be a nitpicker, Matt, but the Tiara was southbound and the Sonic was northbound heading back to Stan's residence across from Shooters.

Also, I think someone else was driving when the impact happened. Judging by the underwater photos of the bodies in the Tiara, the captain was down in the cabin.