Miami Accident Lawyer Blog
MIAMI, FL—By examining various FBI reports and U.S. court cases involving cruise companies, a Canadian researcher determined that the number of sexual assaults that occur on cruise ships is approximately 50 percent higher than the number of sex assaults reported on Canadian land. According to information provided by Canadaeast News Service, the Atlantic researcher who conducted the study is a professor at the Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John’s, Canada and has long payed close attention to the closeted side of the cruise ship industry.
Memorial University Professor Ross Klein assessed Federal Bureau of Investigation reports filed between Oct. 2007-2008, as well as cruise line-involved court cases that took place between 1998 and 2005, as a means of determining the rate of sex assaults aboard cruise vessels.
Upon conducting his research, Klein not only concluded that the sexual assault rate on cruise ships was 50 percent higher than the rate of forcible sex crimes in Canada, 15 percent of the cruise ship sexual assault victims were said to be younger than 18.
Furthermore, Klein’s research indicated that in the past, the majority of onboard sexual attacks consisted of crew members assaulting passengers. Updated data appeared to suggest approximately 50 percent of the cases included passengers assaulting passengers or cruise ship employees assaulting their own co-workers.
According to the Washington State Department of Commerce Office of Crime Victims Advocacy (OCVA), “Sexual assault is a form of violence that uses unwanted sexual actions, contact, pictures and words in ways that are harmful and traumatic to another person.” Sexual assault is defined by the Canadian criminal code in a similar matter.
Professor Klein contended, “The cruise industry is a microcosm of society in a lot of ways… I think most people would find ways to ignore it… I know they have video cameras, but not all of them work. Rarely are they watched in real time. It’s not really surveillance so much as just keeping information.”
The Miami rape victim lawyers of Gerson & Schwartz added that the cruise line industry is in dire need of reform that will ensure the safety of both passengers and ship workers. Cruise ship companies must provide travelers and crew members with adequate protection from rape and sexual violence, as well as other crimes that could potentially occur on the high seas.
About the Miami Cruise Ship Injury 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.