Op-Ed: The Maritime Community Can Help Fight Sexual Assault at Sea
The recent conviction of a ship captain for sexually assaulting a US Merchant Marine Academy midshipman in 2019 shows how long it takes to obtain justice for crimes at sea. It also demonstrated how rarely such incidents are prosecuted. Additional levers should be applied to the current judicial process to improve prosecution rates. The levers include active participation by crew in collecting of evidence, writing of community impact statements, withholding of federal funds, and removal of union membership.
After serving as Maritime Administration Chief Counsel, I served as a locally elected official in Washington DC. I thought I’d spend my time on planning and zoning, traffic issues. That plan changed when one of my constituents was sexually assaulted in 2015. I made it my mission to ensure that the rapist was caught, arrested, prosecuted, and sent to prison. Police had evidence of the rape, but they needed evidence to identify the rapist. Video evidence shared by neighbors helped identify the rapist so that the police could arrest him. The same should happen with a sexual assault at sea: Ask fellow crew members to participate in evidence-gathering. Teach them what evidence is needed to successfully prosecute rape. Including them in the process improves the likelihood of prosecution.
After an at-sea rape, anyone in the maritime community can help by providing prosecutors with community impact statements. Explain how sexual assault discourages people from joining the maritime industry. Highlight how the crimes destroy trust and morale of the crew. At-sea rapes hurt the victim, but they also hurt everyone else who serves with honor in the industry.
It’s also time for the federal government to have a zero-tolerance policy on at-sea rapes aboard US flag ships. Federal funds, maritime security payments, should be withheld from ships where rape occurred and was covered up. The same lever should be applied for all government-financed cargo - that includes cargo related to the Departments of State, Energy, Agriculture, and War. Rape is a crime. Federal tax dollars shouldn’t be given to those who fail to assist in the prosecution of a crime.
Unions should loudly and repeatedly share the message of zero tolerance. You rape a fellow crew member, you’re out of the union and we won’t support you. Union dues, given by honorable members, should not be spent defending someone who has committed a violent crime.
that matters most
Get the latest maritime news delivered to your inbox daily.
Rape is a crime and it shouldn’t take seven years to obtain justice. All hands are needed to improve the current judicial system.
K. Denise Rucker Krepp is Former Maritime Administration Chief Counsel.
The opinions expressed herein are the author's and not necessarily those of The Maritime Executive.
