On Monday, we discussed the tragic accident that took the life of David C. McAuliffe, the lead captain for Sea Tow Services Inc.’s Atlantic City franchise. His body was found on an Ocean City beach last week and mourners gathered for two viewings at the George H. Wimberg Funeral Home in Linwood, New Jersey, before his funeral on May 7. The US Coast Guard is still investigating the cause of the 49-foot CAPE HATTERAS sinking.
As we said on Monday, cases of missing maritime workers take a tremendous emotional toll on families. In another case that we touched on last month, the family of 23-year-old Josh Catlett is waiting to see if autopsy results of a body found along the Delaware River shoreline on April 9 is that of the fisherman who went missing when his fishing vessel sank in the Delaware Bay on April 4. According to New Jersey On-Line, Delaware State Police said that the body was partially decomposed, and one open case of a person missing in the Delaware River involves a Franklinville man who jumped to his death from the Delaware Memorial Bridge on January 20. Catlett was onboard the 40-foot LINDA CLAIRE, and the Coast Guard and New Jersey State Police searched the Delaware Bay for hours after two other crewmembers were rescued by other fisherman when the commercial fishing boat capsized.
Latti Associates LLC has been representing injured commercial fishermen and their families for over 50 years, and you can find more information about fishing accidents on our website. This past fall, Latti Associates LLC obtained a settlement in the amount of $1,100,000 for the family of a crew member who disappeared off a fishing vessel from New Bedford, Massachusetts. In that case, a crew member had been missing for over 30 minutes before it was noticed that he was gone. Negligence and unseaworthiness focused on the inadequate railing height at the bow of the vessel. Despite no one seeing the deceased crew member fall off the vessel, Latti Associates LLC through investigation was able to introduce evidence that more than likely the crew member fell off the bow of the vessel where there was inadequate railing.
If you sustained catastrophic injuries or your loved one was killed while working at sea, use the form on this page to let our Jones Act lawyers review your case or contact our firm today at (617) 523-1000 to set up a free consultation.
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