West

Captain gets 4 years for negligence in California dive boat fire that killed 34

Published

2 years ago

May 6, 2024

Captain gets 4 years for negligence in California dive boat fire that killed 34

Jerry Boylan, the captain of a scuba dive boat that caught fire off California’s coast in 2019, killing 34 people, has been sentenced to four years in prison.
Boylan was convicted on a single count of misconduct or neglect of ship officer, a pre-Civil War statute designed to hold captains and crew criminally responsible for maritime disasters.
“Mr. Boylan lives with significant grief, remorse, and trauma as a result of the deaths of his passengers and crew,” his attorneys wrote in a sentencing memo.

A federal judge on Thursday sentenced a scuba dive boat captain to four years in custody and three years supervised release for criminal negligence after 34 people died in a fire aboard the vessel.

The Sept. 2, 2019, blaze was the deadliest maritime disaster in recent U.S. history, and prompted changes to maritime regulations, congressional reform and several ongoing lawsuits.

Captain Jerry Boylan was found guilty of one count of misconduct or neglect of ship officer last year. The charge is a pre-Civil War statute colloquially known as seaman’s manslaughter. It was designed to hold steamboat captains and crew responsible for maritime disasters.

MAGNITUDE 4.1 EARTHQUAKE RATTLES CALIFORNIA’S INLAND EMPIRE

Boylan’s appeal is ongoing. He faced up to 10 years behind bars.

The defense had asked the judge to sentence Boylan to a five-year probationary sentence, with three years to be served under house arrest.

“While the loss of life here is staggering, there can be no dispute that Mr. Boylan did not intend for anyone to die,” his attorneys wrote in a sentencing memo. “Indeed, Mr. Boylan lives with significant grief, remorse, and trauma as a result of the deaths of his passengers and crew.”

The Conception was anchored off Santa Cruz Island, 25 miles south of Santa Barbara, when it caught fire before dawn on the final day of a three-day excursion, sinking less than 100 feet from shore.

Thirty-three passengers and a crew member died, trapped in a bunkroom below deck. Among the dead were the deckhand, who had landed her dream job; an environmental scientist who conducted research in Antarctica; a globe-trotting couple; a Singaporean data scientist; and a family of three sisters, their father and his wife.

Boylan was the first to abandon ship and jump overboard. Four crew members who joined him also survived.

FILE – In this photo provided by the Ventura County Fire Department, VCFD firefighters respond to a fire aboard the Conception dive boat fire in the Santa Barbara Channel off the coast of Southern California on Sept. 2, 2019. A scuba dive boat captain is scheduled to be sentenced by a federal judge Thursday, May 2, 2024, on a conviction of criminal negligence after 34 people died in the fire aboard the vessel nearly five years ago. (Ventura County Fire Department via AP, File)

Thursday’s sentencing was the final step in a fraught prosecution that’s lasted nearly five years and repeatedly frustrated the victims’ families.

A grand jury in 2020 initially indicted Boylan on 34 counts of seaman’s manslaughter, meaning he could have faced a total of 340 years behind bars. Boylan’s attorneys argued the deaths were the result of a single incident and not separate crimes, so prosecutors got a superseding indictment charging Boylan with only one count.

In 2022, U.S. District Judge George Wu dismissed the superseding indictment, saying it failed to specify that Boylan acted with gross negligence. Prosecutors were then forced to go before a grand jury again.

Although the exact cause of the blaze aboard the Conception remains undetermined, the prosecutors and defense sought to assign blame throughout the 10-day trial last year.

The government said Boylan failed to post the required roving night watch and never properly trained his crew in firefighting. The lack of the roving watch meant the fire was able to spread undetected across the 75-foot boat.

But Boylan’s attorneys sought to pin blame on Glen Fritzler, who with his wife owns Truth Aquatics Inc., which operated the Conception and two other scuba dive boats, often around the Channel Islands. They argued that Fritzler was responsible for failing to train the crew in firefighting and other safety measures, as well as creating a lax seafaring culture they called “the Fritzler way,” in which no captain who worked for him posted a roving watch.

The Fritzlers have not spoken publicly about the tragedy since an interview with a local TV station a few days after the fire. Their attorneys have never responded to requests for comment from The Associated Press.

With the conclusion of the criminal case, attention now turns to several ongoing lawsuits.

Three days after the fire, Truth Aquatics filed suit under a pre-Civil War provision of maritime law that allows it to limit its liability to the value of the remains of the boat, which was a total loss. The time-tested legal maneuver has been successfully employed by the owners of the Titanic and other vessels, and requires the Fritzlers to show they were not at fault.

That case is pending, as well as others filed by victims’ families against the Coast Guard for what they allege was lax enforcement of the roving watch requirement.

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West

Firm behind climate lawsuits faces DOJ referral after court finds ‘misconduct bordering on criminal’

Published

2 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Press Room

Firm behind climate lawsuits faces DOJ referral after court finds ‘misconduct bordering on criminal’

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A federal judge’s extraordinary decision to refer Hagens Berman to the Department of Justice for possible unlawful conduct escalated to an appeals court this week, marking one of the toughest challenges yet for a high-profile law firm known, in part, for its aggressive climate litigation.

The referral came as part of a lawsuit that Hagens Berman brought related to a separate topic, alleged drug-related injuries, and involved Judge Paul Diamond taking the rare step of asking the DOJ to review whether Hagens Berman acted unlawfully.

Diamond noted in an order on Dec. 2 that a court-appointed lawyer, known as a special master, found Hagens Berman engaged in a yearslong effort to bring “fraudulent” complaints in the case in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Hagens Berman also obstructed discovery and “doctored evidence,” the special master found. The order noted that the firm’s apparent “misconduct bordering on criminal” warranted the DOJ’s involvement.

TOP ENERGY GROUP CALLS FOR PROBE INTO SECRETIVE ‘NATIONAL LAWFARE CAMPAIGN’ TO INFLUENCE JUDGES ON CLIMATE

The Department of Justice headquarters on Feb. 19, 2020, in Washington, D.C. (Drew Angerer)

Hagens Berman has aggressively pushed back on the allegations and turned to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit for relief. The firm accused the judge of bias, noting it had recently sought Diamond’s recusal from the case and claiming the judge could be retaliating.

“To rebut the charge in the court below would risk fomenting even greater ire of the district judge—ire that would be calamitous for petitioners’ clients,” Hagens Berman lawyers wrote. “To remain silent is to permit a baseless accusation leveled by an Article III judge no less, to hang like a dark, ignominious cloud over petitioners’ professional reputation.”

The clash comes as Hagens Berman continues positioning itself as a go-to firm for high-risk litigation, including environmental cases, even as its track record in that arena shows mixed results.

Last month, the firm filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of Washington state homeowners against ExxonMobil, Shell, Chevron and other fossil fuel companies. The suit alleges the companies sparked a rise in natural disasters that has driven up homeowners’ insurance premiums and claims they mounted a “coordinated and deliberate scheme to hide the truth about climate change and the effects of burning fossil fuels.”

Fuel prices at a Shell gas station in Burien, Washington, on Wednesday, March 9, 2022. (Chona Kasinger/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

But in addition to the DOJ referral, Hagens Berman has thus far struggled to secure clear victories or settlements in its climate cases and was dealt some legal blows in that realm in recent years.

Efforts to reach a Hagens Berman representative for comment were unsuccessful by press time.

In 2018, Judge William Alsup, a Clinton appointee, tossed out San Francisco and Oakland’s case, which was brought by Hagens Berman against fossil fuel companies over the alleged effects of climate change. Alsup called the scope of the cities’ claims in that case “breathtaking.”

“It would reach the sale of fossil fuels anywhere in the world, including all past and otherwise lawful sales, where the seller knew that the combustion of fossil fuels contributed to the phenomenon of global warming,” Alsup wrote.

The cities dropped Hagens Berman as their representation after a series of adverse decisions in that case.

CLIMATE LAWFARE CAMPAIGN DEALT BLOW IN SOUTH CAROLINA

People march as they take part in a strike to demand action on the global climate crisis on Sept. 20, 2019, in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The law firm also lost in a similar case that same year in New York. In that dismissal, the late Judge John Keenan, a Reagan appointee, again found Hagens Berman’s lawsuit was far too expansive.

“The City has not sued under New York law for claims related to the production of fossil fuels in New York,” Keenan wrote. “The City brings claims for damages caused by global greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the combustion of Defendants’ fossil fuels, which are produced and used ‘worldwide.’”

The DOJ review, if upheld by the 3rd Circuit, could now overshadow the firm’s more recent endeavors and raises the stakes for the practice as it continues to take on ambitious cases.

Ashley Oliver is a reporter for Fox News Digital and FOX Business, covering the Justice Department and legal affairs. Email story tips to ashley.oliver@fox.com.

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San Francisco, CA

Executive chef of new buzzy San Francisco restaurant Bourbon Steak visits ABC7

Published

4 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Press Room

Executive chef of new buzzy San Francisco restaurant Bourbon Steak visits ABC7

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — ABC7 got in the holiday spirit Monday with the executive chef of San Francisco’s buzziest restaurants that just opened in October — to a lot of fanfare.

We’re talking about Bourbon Steak, inside the Westin St. Francis Hotel.

Legendary celebrity chef Michael Mina’s latest opening brings him back to San Francisco, and everyone came to celebrate: a cable car, Mayor Daniel Lurie, and Warriors superstar Stephen Curry — a partner in this venture who created the bourbon bar Eighth Rule inside the restaurant.

But they’re not just about style. They are first and foremost about steaks.

Because they are on the menu for so many holiday gatherings, we are delighted that Bourbon Steak executive chef Kevin Schantz joined us on ABC7’s “Midday Live.”

Watch the full interview in the player above.

If you’re on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live

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Denver, CO

Where To Get Chinese Food In And around Denver On Christmas Day – 303 Magazine

Published

5 hours ago

December 23, 2025

Press Room

Where To Get Chinese Food In And around Denver On Christmas Day – 303 Magazine

Chinese food became popular on Christmas Day primarily because Chinese restaurants were among the few businesses open, offering a convenient, affordable, and culturally neutral dining option.

Several excellent Chinese restaurants in the Denver area that will be open on Christmas Day, continuing a holiday tradition. Many of these locations offer both dine-in and takeout options.

We recommend calling ahead to confirm their holiday hours and placing any takeout orders in advance, as availability may change.

We hope this list of our favorite Chinese restaurants is helpful!

Central Denver

Peter’s Chinese Cafe

A local Chinese-American favorite since 1985, famous for its sesame chicken and loyal clientele

Directions: 2609 E 12th Ave

Great Wall Chinese Restaurant

Offering takeout and delivery from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
You can order online at cogreatwalltogo.com.

Directions: 440 E Colfax Ave

Pepper Asian Bistro

This spot has locations in City Park and the Lower Highlands, providing a mix of Chinese and Thai options for dine-in or takeout.

Directions: 2831 E Colfax Ave

Chinatown Bistro

A cozy uptown option located at 1789 Ogden St., serving classic dishes like sesame chicken and Mongolian beef with easy takeout/delivery options.

Directions: 1789 Ogden St

Little Ollie’s

Open for dine-in, takeout, and delivery from 3 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Christmas Day.
Order online at littleollies.com.

Directions: 2360 E 3rd Ave

South & West Denver/Englewood

Golden Shanghai Restaurant(USHI)

A beloved establishment open from noon to 9 p.m., offering Chinese, Thai, and Vietnamese fare.
Order online at goldenshanghai-denver.com.

Directions: 1412 S Parker Rd

Star Kitchen

A large Chinese fixture known for its dim sum and seafood dishes.

Directions: 2917 W Mississippi

Bistro King Asian Restaurant

This family-owned restaurant in Englewood is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Order online via their website bistrokingonline.com.

Directions: 3542 S Fox St

Chopstix Fusion

A highly-praised, small Denver-area restaurant known for authentic Hong Kong-style cuisine, especially clay pots, noodles (like Beef Chow Fun), and incredible house-made Asian desserts.

Directions: 2020 S Parker Rd

Aurora & Nearby Areas

Chef Liu’s Kitchen

Known for its bold Szechuan and Northern Chinese dishes, available for dine-in or takeout.

Directions: 2222 S Havana St

Dillon’s Dumpling House

Open from 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Christmas Day for takeout, delivery, and dine-in.
Order online at dillonsdumplinghouse.com.

Directions: 3571 S Tower Rd

Nana’s Dim Sum & Dumplings

The Aurora location is open from noon to 9 p.m. for dine-in, takeout, and delivery.
You can order via their website nanasdimsumanddumplings.com.

Directions: 2495 S Havana St

Shanghai Kitchen