Cruise Ship Lawyers Blog
At least two people were taken to the hospital for injuries following a fight that broke out aboard a Royal Caribbean ship this week, according to national media outlets.
The incident happened Monday around 6:48 p.m. when Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies and local firefighters were called our to PortMiami for reports of a “dispute”, according to national media. Investigators later learned that an alleged verbal argument became physical aboard the ship, causing the captain to return to port.
The ship returned to port around 8:30 p.m.
Both passengers involved were take to a local hospital for treatment of minor injuries and told police they did not want to press charges.
This is the latest in cruise ship brawls that have made headlines. Several months ago, a massive melee broke out in Galveston, Texas, with videos surfacing online of the incident. As a result, several people were banned from traveling with the cruise line involved in that incident and many faced criminal charges.
Leesfield & Partners
Leesfield & Partners, a Florida-based personal injury law firm, has seen every manner of onboard injury and all the ways in which cruise ships will attempt to escape liability. With nearly five decades of experience, our skilled trial attorneys have handled injury cases involving excruciating falls, medical malpractice at the hands of inadequately trained medical staff, horrific excursion cases, assaults and other onboard injuries. Our attorneys consistently work to achieve the best possible outcome for every client.
Modern cruise ships can accommodate thousands of passengers simultaneously. As the industry continues to grow and recover from a shutdown in 2020 due to the pandemic, cruise lines have begun to compete with one another to attract the highest number of passengers. With teetering waterslides, expanding fleets and the debut of mega-ships, the cruise industry has entered a period of rapid, lucrative expansion. But with more passengers on board comes a corresponding increase in potential injuries.
In an article that was published last year addressing the rise in cruise ship crime, Ira Leesfield, the firm’s Founder and Managing Partner, attributed the trend to the surge in passenger numbers. However, despite this, he emphasized that cruise lines remain responsible for ensuring passenger safety.
“That’s just kind of a one in a long series of why there’s more sexual abuse and sexual activity on the ships, and I think your question is why? And I think the answer that I see is very lax policing, and very lax training, because a lot of the people … are crew members. This guy was a crew member,” he said.
Previous Onboard Injury Cases
Leesfield & Partners previously represented a Canadian woman who was traveling on a cruise ship when she was horrifically raped. The woman was in her cabin alone when a member of the ship’s crew abused his employee status and used a keycard to access the woman’s room where he attacked her.
The firm secured a multi-million-dollar amount for the woman in that case.
The firm recovered $2.5 million for a 9-year-old who collided with an unpadded steel grommet while diving for an out-of-bounds ball as he played on a ship’s basketball court. The child in that case suffered a catastrophic brain injury as a result on the traumatic incident.
Similarly, the firm represented a man, 62, who was injured while playing pickleball aboard his cruise ship. The firm settled the case for $500,000.
The firm obtained a confidential settlement for a family devastated by the tragic loss of their young daughter. In that case, the child was separated from her family aboard a ship when she leaned over a poorly designed cruise ship railing and fell five stories to her death.
Bernardo Pimentel II, a Trial Attorney at the firm, is representing a woman who suffers extreme trauma and emotional turmoil after it was revealed she was one among numerous passengers, including children, whose privacy was violated when a crew member planted hidden cameras in their cabins.
That crew member was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for producing child sex abuse material.
That case is ongoing.
Previous Excursion Injury Cases
Previously, Leesfield & Partners represented the family of mother and daughter who booked a parasailing adventure on their cruise ship. While out on the excursion, and suspended hundreds of feet in the air, a piece of equipment snapped and sent the two falling into the water.
The mother was killed, and her daughter suffered a traumatic brain injury. The cruise ship attempted to distance itself from the excursion operators and claimed that they were an independent contractor, however, Leesfield & Partners attorneys were able to disprove this theory by demonstrating that the ship marketed the excursion and offered tickets for sale on board.
The firm settled the case for $7.25 million.
Leesfield & Partners represented a family whose son, a special needs man, died following a crash on a cruise ship excursion. In that case, the bus careened off a cliff on a cruise-sponsored shore excursion. The son was ejected and died in front of his family.
The firm settled the case for $2,990,000.
A rollover ATV crash on a shore excursion caused serious injuries to multiple passengers. Leesfield & Partners settled the case for over $1.2 million.
Our 68-year-old client sustained severe injuries, including a fractured femur, when thrown off a “banana boat” during a cruise’s water sport excursion. The firm secured a $600,000 settlement in that case.
Ongoing Excursion Cases
Partner Justin B. Shapiro is representing a woman who was injured on a cruise ship excursion. In that case, the woman purchased a jet ski excursion marketed as one for beginners and was severely injured when the tour guide leading the group crashed into her from behind while attempting to pass her on the water.
That case is ongoing.
Mr. Pimentel is handling an ongoing case of a woman who was further injured by crew members after returning to her cruise from shore. The woman tripped and fell on an uneven bridge on shore, seriously injured her left ankle, knee, arm and elbow, leaving her in a great deal of pain. She was able to walk back to the tender boat where she informed the crew she would need to see the ship’s physician.
No action was taken to ensure that medical personnel would be there to meet her when she arrived. She disembarked without assistance and, while walking up the gangway, paused to gather herself while in extreme pain. She told the crew she needed immediate medical attention. The crew, again, failed to provide a wheelchair or another means of transport to the infirmary. While still on the gangway, crew members approached our client and grabbed her arm. She fell to the floor in agony and was finally given a wheelchair and taken to the infirmary.
While there, she was diagnosed with multiple fractures to her hip and shoulder. Hours later, she was transferred to a remote hospital in Brazil and was left to wait a full week with insufficient medical care before she could be transported to a larger city and then to the U.S. for a full hip replacement.
She spent weeks recovering at a hospital in Florida before she was able to return to her home in another state.
