Cruise Ship Accident Lawyer Blog
MIAMI, FL— October 21, 2011 – Miami-based Royal Caribbean cruise line is being sued in connection with the alleged rape of a South African woman who was working aboard a Celebrity cruise ship at the time of the attack, the Miami New Times reported. Although the former cruise ship employee reported the sexual attack to cruise line officials, doing so led to her being quarantined in her cabin without medical attention for several days and then ultimately dropped back off in South Africa, according to the pending lawsuit.
Given that no foreign police authorities investigated the alleged cruise ship rape and given that the FBI had no jurisdiction to do so—as the attack was said to have occurred off the coast of Israel—the sexual assault victim was left with no means of seeking justice. The maritime injury lawsuit claims the victim was raped after having a drink in her co-worker’s cabin and blacking out for unknown reasons.
After being confined to her cabin and denied medical care (including anti-retro viral drugs, which are used as a means of preventing the potential contraction of HIV) for multiple days, the foreign cruise worker was dumped back in her country. Although Royal Caribbean would not comment on the pending lawsuit, which was filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court on Aug. 31., the suit suggested the popular Miami-based cruise line’s decision to bring the victim back to South Africa was an attempt to dodge liability in the case.
The lawsuit further alleges that although the rape victim suffered severe emotional distress and was left unable to work, cruise officials ultimately refused to provide the woman with compensation for her post-rape medical care and therapy sessions. The case is underway.
According to statistics posted on the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) website, the FBI regarded sexual assault as the leading crime reported on cruise ships, accounting for 55 percent of all maritime crimes reported to the bureau.
About the Miami Cruise Ship Accident Lawyers and Maritime Attorneys at Gerson & Schwartz, P.A.
Leading Florida crime victim lawyers Gerson & Schwartz state that ship firms have managed to avoid potential litigation through unethical business practices for years. Such practices can leave victims of molestation and/or sexual assault struggling to attain compensation for their pain and suffering. For more than 30 years, the Miami cruise ship injury attorneys of Gerson & Schwartz, P.A. have been dedicated to protecting the rights of travelers and cruise ship employees who have been sexually assaulted, sustained serious injury or been subject to preventable harm while aboard these “hospitable” vessels.