Nov 3, 2006 1:23 pm US/Eastern
Tugboater Who Helped S.I. Ferry Victims Sues
Cites Maritime Law, Demands $ 2 Million
NEW YORK (AP) ―
A tugboat crew believes that an ancient maritime law entitles it to $8 million after securing the Staten Island ferry that crashed more than three years ago, killing 11 passengers and injuring dozens more.
The tugboat towed the moribund boat back to the ferry terminal, allowing emergency crews to begin helping those on board the Andrew J. Barberi that had slammed into a pier during evening rush hour.
Tugboat mate, Robert G. Seckers, is seeking $2 million, and plans to distribute the money among the four-person crew of the Dorothy J.
"I don't need to be a hero," Mr. Seckers, 59, said. "But every crew member on that tug was a hero, and they didn't get any acknowledgment, thank you or anything for it. It wasn't right. They went far above the call of duty."
The boat's owner is asking for $6 million.
They're both making the claim under a tradition called "pure marine salvage," which says boats that aid boats in trouble are entitled to compensation.
"As far as I'm concerned, my men were the heroes of the whole thing," said tugboat owner Dorothy Julian, 49, of Staten Island. "They just jumped into action."
Both 2003 lawsuits were filed in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, along with dozens of others in the wake of the Oct. 15, 2003 crash.
The city disputes the claims, believing the Dorothy J. has a city contract requiring it to help out in case of trouble. The city also contends the boat was not going to sink.
"The (crash) was tragic, but did not involve a case of 'marine peril,"' a city lawyer wrote in legal papers.
The city has settled 110 out of 191 claims, costing $16 million.
Ferry pilot Richard Smith was sentenced to 18 months in prison for passing out at the helm of the vessel. The city's former ferry director, Patrick Ryan, received a year and one day for not enforcing a rule requiring two pilots to operate ferries during docking.
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