Boston boating accident 19 y/o lost an arm

[dpmulvey]

"He began trying criminal cases in 2007, during his final year of law school, as a full-time student-prosecutor with Norfolk County District Attorney's Office, while taking evening classes and bartending on the weekends to help support himself...In addition to his law practice, Benjamin is a well-rounded entrepreneur with part-ownership in Julep Bar (Boston), Blue Inc. (Boston)...He is well-known to many in the hospitality industry as their first call when in legal trouble."


http://www.urbelislaw.com/oui-dui-motor-vehicle-crimes.html

ARRGGGHHH! I didn't make myself clear. I didn't read where one of his passengers was a paramedic.

 

[dpmulvey]

Really???? So if someone is over the legal limits even slightly and they are pulled over they should be drowned?

Drowning may be a bit over the top. In my travels globally, I find the US has probably the most liberal DUI laws.

 

[scoflaw]

Without getting details of the accident, maybe he was just idling along, talking with passengers up front, when some drunk woman jumps off the back of the boat without telling him of her intensions. He was only at a .09 what was the girls BAC? Can't keep an eye on all of them

 

[wakeup 19]

she went in the water to retrieve a floating cushion. they were cruising off an island in the harbor. It can get rough in that area depending on boat traffic. It was blowing 15- 20 mph that day. I am not sure if he was aware that she was in the water or not. water temp in mid 60's. 13 people on boat, 4 over 30 were men and the rest were women in the late teen's or so???
Tragic accident for all. he measured .09 4 hours after the accident as he refused to take test initially.
she is listed in stable condition. He is still in jail after judge posted $75 cash bail.

 

[dpmulvey]

Without getting details of the accident, maybe he was just idling along, talking with passengers up front, when some drunk woman jumps off the back of the boat without telling him of her intensions. He was only at a .09 what was the girls BAC? Can't keep an eye on all of them

MA legal limit is 0.08 BAC. His BAC was 0.09 "X" hours after the initial refusal to take a test. By default, his BAC had to be higher at the time of the incedent unless he started drinking after the girl's arm was severed.

" Can't keep an eye on all of them" You want to rethink this or are you donning Kevlar at the moment.

 

[scoflaw]

.09 ain't that drunk if your a drinker. OK he started drinking after the accident, good story I'm sure he'll use it.

Unless he was backing down on the girl in the water, I'd say it's accidental.

You've got a dozen drinking passengers, if 1 gets suicidal/stupid who's gonna stop her.

Don't need Kevlar for internet tough guys

 

[PMC]

A lot of factors come into play here that build a very dangerous situation, but I'm going with the passengers being the problem. Even if the boat is rated to hold the head count and weight capacity, 12 people is a complete sh*t-show. I yell at the kids to stay quiet when running the boat in tight situations, and picturing a bunch of 19-22 year old girls partying it up, well.....Distraction was the reason for the accident IMO. I don't think he was aware the girl was overboard until it was too late.

 

[Do Over]

.09 ain't "that drunk" if your a drinker. OK he started drinking after the accident, good story I'm sure he'll use it.

that's funny


Unless he was backing down on the girl in the water, I'd say it's accidental.

absolutely....certainly not intended

You've got a dozen drinking passengers, if 1 gets suicidal/stupid who's gonna stop her.

any responsible Captain or human being I would think...that boat isn't that big

Don't need Kevlar for internet tough guys

don't think he was flaming ya...it was a joke (I think)...relax a little

as posted

 

[skunkman]

This is a horribly tragic event but I think there is a bit too much judging going on without all of the facts. Certainly his profession has nothing to do with any of this. Has anyone met the guy to objectively call him a scum bag. Did alcohol have anything to do with the accident? Maybe, but maybe not at all. As mentioned by another poster, that seems like too many people on the boat. Very sad no matter how you look at it.

 

[Mikemapva]

13 people on the boat. Is that a lot for that size boat? I would go crazy if I had that many people in the cockpit.

They keep calling the boat a 29' boat, but that looks exactly like my Chaparral 300 Signature, which is really around 31'.

In any case, I can't imagine that many people on the boat, as it feels crowded with more than around 6 people in the cockpit at one time.

 

[trflgrl]

ARRGGGHHH! I didn't make myself clear. I didn't read where one of his passengers was a paramedic.

I've read nothing indicating any passengers were paramedics--a paramedic from one of the emergency/rescue boats applied the tourniquet.



I agree twelve people would be difficult to monitor even without consideration for alcohol; I think that's why several of us find it objectionable to carry so many, and probably keep our passenger count lower in our own situations.

 

[dwna1a]

I'd like to know how anyone could walk into a court room and say not guilty, when he knew damn well he had been drinking and was the operator of the boat the damn near killed one of his party goers

 

[WDCboater]

Safety-wise, I was a bit surprised to learn from SeaRay that vessels (yachts!) of a certain length aren't rated/labeled for passenger capacity in the same way smaller craft are--I had asked to make sure I had the minimum required number of life jackets on board.

If you have an NMMA Yacht Certificate on your boat there is no capacity plate. I just had this conversation last week with the Coast Guard Aux who did our annual safety check. It's something boat makers get away with and unfortunately there are many idiots out there who don't know how many people is too much. Isn't it odd that many of these accidents happen on boats that are crowded with people? (sarcasm)

The bigger question was did he have all of the USCG required safety equipment onboard. The law is one jacket per person and of the appropriate size. We carry more life jackets than we would ever allow people onboard because they are stowed in different places and we want people to reach them quickly in an emergency.

 

[uprightshark]

A Captain is always responsible for the safe operation of his boat and the safety of its crew ... period.Don't want to be judgemental, but that is boating 101 and they teach it in your fundemental course for every operators certificate.

 

[dpmulvey]

.09 ain't that drunk if your a drinker. OK he started drinking after the accident, good story I'm sure he'll use it.

Unless he was backing down on the girl in the water, I'd say it's accidental.

You've got a dozen drinking passengers, if 1 gets suicidal/stupid who's gonna stop her.

Don't need Kevlar for internet tough guys

".09 ain't that drunk if your a drinker." You are stating an opinion. 0.09 is above the limit for BUI according to the law. The lawmakers deliberated, made a determination and wrote it into law.

"Unless he was backing down on the girl in the water, I'd say it's accidental." I would hope you are correct and the incident was not intentional. The fact remains the captain was drunk by legal standards. Accident or not, his actions caused bodily harm to another human. Decisions have consequences. Mass. law offers the following consequences for the captains decision.

Massachusetts law states that a person is considered to be boating under the
influence (BUI) if he or she has a blood or breath alcohol concentration of
0.08% or greater.

Massachusetts law establishes the following penalties for BUI:

• Those convicted for the first time of BUI may be imprisoned for up to 30
  months, and fined up to $1,000 or imprisoned and fined. Offenders may also have
  his or her motor vehicle license and vessel's registration revoked for up to one
  year.

From the Boston Herald:

"pleaded not guilty yesterday to operating a boat while under the influence causing serious bodily injury and negligent operation of a boat. "

• Offenders convicted of BUI and causing serious bodily injury to another
  person may be imprisoned for up to 10 years and fined up to $5,000.

Urbelis initially refused to submit to field sobriety tests, but four hours later blew a blood-alcohol level of .09. She said police found “large quantities of alcohol” on the boat.From the Boston Herald:"Urbelis initially refused to submit to field sobriety tests, but four hours later blew a blood-alcohol level of .09. She said police found “large quantities of alcohol” on the boat."

• By operating a vessel on Massachusetts' waters, you have given “implied”
  consent to alcohol testing if arrested for boating under the influence. Anyone
  who refuses to submit to a blood alcohol level test is subject to having their
  motor vehicle license and vessel's registration revoked for 180 days.

So..... He's blown it on those counts. Let's go on......

From the Boston Herald....

“At the time of the response there were four people in the water, which included Mr. Urbelis,” Rimar said. Rather than handle the situation, he leaves the helm with the props engaged or turns command to another person, possibly drunk by legal standards who put the props in gear. In either event, if more than 7 people on the boat were drunk he stood a good chance of violating this one.

• It is illegal for the owner or operator of a vessel to knowingly permit it
  to be operated by someone under the influence of alcohol or any controlled
  substance.

What isn't falling into the bad boating problem is a 14 year old boy on board. Does contributing to the deliquency of a minor come into play. The girls were between 19 and 22. What is the legal drinking age in Mass? Is he guilty of serving to underage persons as well?

No internet tough guy here. Just a guy who spent a couple of years on the water, made his fair share of blunders though none this serious, and knows a bit about how fast things can and will go wrong.

This guy effed up on every possible front. It was easily preventable. He chose not to. Let's see how your state handles it.

 

[scoflaw]

Sounds like you want to be judge, jury and executioner. You don't know if he was at the helm at the time of accident. If he was and put it in neutral or turned the engines off someone else may have taken it upon themselves to power the boat up. Fact is, you don't know what happened. So why don't you sit back and let the detectives do the work and stay tuned like everyone else, to what exactly happened

 

[JV II]

I've read nothing indicating any passengers were paramedics--a paramedic from one of the emergency/rescue boats applied the tourniquet.

Sorry, I speed read it and it was a paramedic and nurse on the FIRE boat, not on Naut Guilty. Even more amazing she didn't bleed out before first responders arrived.

 

[dpmulvey]

Sounds like you want to be judge, jury and executioner. You don't know if he was at the helm at the time of accident. If he was and put it in neutral or turned the engines off someone else may have taken it upon themselves to power the boat up. Fact is, you don't know what happened. So why don't you sit back and let the detectives do the work and stay tuned like everyone else, to what exactly happened

Fact is, everything I quoted is from Mass. Law and from the articles in the Boston Newspaper. I've made no accusations. I'm not the judge. The judge had to yell at the arrestee to get into her courtroom as he was hiding behind a door. Not my words, the Boston Globe's. I cannot say if he was at the helm or not at the helm at the time of the accident. I can say the Boston Globe says that he was in the water and was fished out by the USCG.

I'm not the jury. I've served proudly on juries. Juries decide questions in fact. I don't believe the arrestee can get a fair trial in the Boston area. I believe the facts would be too skewed and the jury too jaundiced. If they move the trial to VA, I believe I could serve on the jury without prejudice.

I could not be the executioner. If chosen for the jury, being the executioner would be a conflict of interest.


The Boston Globe may have failed in one area. They never mentioned if there was more than one arrest for operating a boat while under the influence causing serious bodily injury and negligent operation of a boat.

 

[kiloil]

I'll bet there are foot prints on the ceiling above the v-berth.:smt043

Ha I needed that one.

 

[Gofirstclass]

Without getting details of the accident, maybe he was just idling along, talking with passengers up front, when some drunk woman jumps off the back of the boat without telling him of her intensions. He was only at a .09 what was the girls BAC? Can't keep an eye on all of them

Scoflaw, I think you're way off base as are others who have made comments about a .09% BAC not being too drunk. There's a reason why states have set the limit at .08% BAC. It's because at any level above that a person is too intoxicated to be operating a car/boat/whatever.

As to the number of people on board, I don't have a problem with that number. I would not have done that when I had my 330 Sundancer, but we frequently host charity groups and cruises with friends on special occasions where have have more than that.

Here's a photo of a charity cruise with 15 guests on board. We've had as many as 22 guests on board plus my wife and I.

When we do have a large group on board we always make sure several things happen-
-we have plenty of PFD's on board for the crew and the guests
-my wife stays below to keep an eye on things and I watch from above.
-our guests can (and do) drink but we keep an eye on the consumption to make sure nobody gets real drunk. They do have to drive home later.
-whenever I have to move the boat I DO NOT DRINK ANY INTOXICANTS. Period. As was mentioned, the skipper is responsible for the boat and the safety of everyone on board.

As an attorney, this 'gentleman' was well aware of the amount of booze it takes to get a person to the legal limit. He drank more than he should have and it's going to come back and bite him on the azz. (borrowing that word from Wayne!)