With 12 people on board did he even know she went in after the cushion? I imagine it was a bit hectic on board even before the accident. Not defending him just saying maybe it wasn't entirely his fault

sounds like a whole buncha people guilty of being drunk and stupid.

This is my take on it

it was all because of a seat cuchon?? my my..i think it was not a smart move on her part..

As I rule I don't make quick maneuvers to retrieve things. To many peoples first reaction to sun glasses flying off is to crank the wheel, fug that it's gone.

I don't think you can blame her. He is the captain. It's his job to know what happens on his boat. Also he had 12 people and several were all underage. If they were drinking as well then that falls on him. The guy thought he could do anything he wanted because he is a lawyer and has money.
1: you don't have underage girls on your boat unless is yours or a friends child.
2: you kill the engines when someone goes in the water.
3:4 hours later he was still over the limit, he never should have been behind the wheel of anything.
Just my .02 cents

The boat was a 29' Chaparral Cruiser. 12 people on board is still a lot. I'm guessing the girl likely jumped in and the captain didn't know it. Lots of mistakes there. But the main thing is the guy was hammered. If he was .09 4 hrs. later, he was ripped at the time of the accident. Very tragic accident that just ruined the lives of 2 people!!

Gee you don't think that is why he waited as long as he could to have them test him huh?

Who knows what happened right away but he sure knew how to cover his a$$ as much as he could.

There were for sure several mistakes made, I think we all agree on that. I also think we can all agree the Captain was certainly over the limit and therefore has some responsibility(maybe all of it). But my first question is...if the boat was in gear and moving how did she get near the prop. If she jumped in with the boat in gear it would be only a split seconds and shes 10+ feet behind the boat and that distance is growing. She would have to be one heck of a swimmer to catch back up with the boat without the Captain stopping(putting it in neutral) especially dragging a boat cushion. Which is the second thing to ask, how did a boat cushion get in the water...could not have blown out if they were going slow enough for this girl to think she can jump and get it? Seems more likely the captain was backing back to the cushion with the girl on the platform trying to grab it and she falls in. That seems like a much more plausible way for her to get to the prop. Without police knowledge of actual witness accounts we may never know what happened for sure. Its sucks either way. Just my 2 cents.

John

I agree with you. Certainly the girl is at fault for jumping overboard and swimming up to a boat running and in gear. HOWEVER, the operator of the vessel is responsible for ALL of his/her occupants. It is the captains responsibility to insure their safety. If someone goes in the water while my boat is in gear, I will immediately toss it into neutral or even just rip the tether. If he was under the influence, this very well impaired his judgment in keeping the boat in gear and running with an occupant in the water.