Captain charged in offshore incident

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In an unusual case of a crew member being lost offshore, a Maine-based boat owner has been charged under a little-used Federal statute known as "seaman's manslaughter."  The unusual case has been brought against Camden resident Rick Smith, the owner/captain of a 43-foot yawl named Cimarron. Smith is under house arrest in the U.S. Virgin Islands and awaiting trial. 

In October 2015 Smith was heading south to the Virgin Islands with two other crew aboard Cimarron when he picked up a new crew member, David Pontius, in Beaufort, N.C.. During the passage from Beaufort to St. John, Pontius reportedly exhibited erratic behavior, assaulted Smith and then jumped overboard and was lost. Pontius' body was not recovered and Smith continued on to his destination.

Now Smith is facing Federal charges of "misconduct, negligence and inattention to duties." His boat has been impounded and he faces the possibility of 10 years in prison. A recent article in Maine's Portland Press Herald has more on this story.  

By Ocean Navigator