Wrongful Termination after Sexual Assualt

[bhughes2621]

What is the name of your state? Washington but the incident happened in Hawaii.

My daughter was sexually assaulted on the cruise ship she was working on, by another employee. She reported the assault to her superiors and was told "everything will be all right."

She informed them that she would be pressing charges. The next day she was terminated. They left her on the dock with no warning, money or place to stay. The police were never contacted by the cruise line to investigate a possible assault.

The reason they gave her for the termination was because she was drinking. They have a video tape of her being helped to her room, by the person who assaulted her, where she could barely stand.

All three of her roommates state that "she had one drink then 30 minutes later she was out of it, so there was no chance that it could have been consensual"

The security department and superiors told her roommate to tell her "let it go, because there was nothing she could do about it!"

The person who committed the assault was only reprimanded.

After being left on the dock she went to the emergency room where a sexual assault kit was done and she informed Police of the assault. The medical examination showed she had traces of Rohypnol in her system. The Police believe this was most likely in the drink she was given, and the video shows she was clearly more then intoxicated.

At no time has the cruise line contacted her to investigate the possible assault, also she was the fourth female terminated in one month for being intoxicated.

My question is should she retain an employment attorney, or a maritime law attorney? Does the attorney need to be located in Hawaii were the incident occurred, Washington were we live, or Florida were the corporate office is?

Please help!

[BelizeBreeze]

Originally Posted by bhughes2621

What is the name of your state? Washington but the incident happened in Hawaii.

My daughter was sexually assaulted on the cruise ship she was working on, by another employee. She reported the assault to her superiors and was told "everything will be all right."

She informed them that she would be pressing charges. The next day she was terminated. They left her on the dock with no warning, money or place to stay. The police were never contacted by the cruise line to investigate a possible assault.

The reason they gave her for the termination was because she was drinking. They have a video tape of her being helped to her room, by the person who assaulted her, where she could barely stand.

All three of her roommates state that "she had one drink then 30 minutes later she was out of it, so there was no chance that it could have been consensual"

The security department and superiors told her roommate to tell her "let it go, because there was nothing she could do about it!"

The person who committed the assault was only reprimanded.

After being left on the dock she went to the emergency room where a sexual assault kit was done and she informed Police of the assault. The medical examination showed she had traces of Rohypnol in her system. The Police believe this was most likely in the drink she was given, and the video shows she was clearly more then intoxicated.

At no time has the cruise line contacted her to investigate the possible assault, also she was the fourth female terminated in one month for being intoxicated.

My question is should she retain an employment attorney, or a maritime law attorney? Does the attorney need to be located in Hawaii were the incident occurred, Washington were we live, or Florida were the corporate office is?

Please help!

The first thing she needs to do is file rape charges against the person who committed this crime. Then, she needs to file a formal complaint with the Florida Department of labor and lastly, she need to contact the meanest sob personal injury attorney she can find.
added: the attorney needs to be located where the incident occurred. IF the attorney feels the case needs to be filed against the shipping company, then they can arrange a partnership with a florida firm.

[bhughes2621]

She has already filed a report with the Police Department; they are investigating, and believe the have a strong case to file criminal charges. Apparently this has happened several times on this ship and with this cruise line.

What state should she retain the attorney in?

[BelizeBreeze]

Originally Posted by bhughes2621

She has already filed a report with the Police Department; they are investigating, and believe the have a strong case to file criminal charges. Apparently this has happened several times on this ship and with this cruise line.

What state should she retain the attorney in?

Consult with an attorney where the crime occurred. They can give you guidance on where to file. However, you will not be able to file for any damages other than the wrongful termination until the criminal trial is over.

So consult with an attorney now, file a claim with the department of labor in the state where the corporate offices are located and then pursue that claim first.

[JETX]

Assuming that the ship sailed from a US port, the cruise line is liable. In Morton v. De Oliveira, 984 F.2d 289 (9th Cir.), cert. denied sub nom., Carnival Cruise Lines, Inc. v. Morton, 510U.S.907 (1993), in which a passenger alleged she was raped by a crew member in her cabin, the Ninth Circuit reviewed the issue of crew members' assaults on passengers in light of the usual "reasonable care under the circumstances" standard and held the ship liable.
Source: [url]http://library.findlaw.com/1999/Oct/1/129463.html[/url]

You might consider having her contact the attorneys at the following site as they are very experienced in cruise line liability cases.
[url]http://www.lipcon.com/index.shtml[/url]

[BelizeBreeze]

Originally Posted by JETX

Assuming that the ship sailed from a US port, the cruise line is liable. In Morton v. De Oliveira, 984 F.2d 289 (9th Cir.), cert. denied sub nom., Carnival Cruise Lines, Inc. v. Morton, 510U.S.907 (1993), in which a passenger alleged she was raped by a crew member in her cabin, the Ninth Circuit reviewed the issue of crew members' assaults on passengers in light of the usual "reasonable care under the circumstances" standard and held the ship liable.
Source: [url]http://library.findlaw.com/1999/Oct/1/129463.html[/url]

You might consider having her contact the attorneys at the following site as they are very experienced in cruise line liability cases.
[url]http://www.lipcon.com/index.shtml[/url]

Thanks Jet. I was swimming upstream trying to find the case.

[bhughes2621]

Thank you everyone. I contacted Charles Lipcon yesterday, and he has been a termendous help. He is now guiding my daughter through this difficult process.

This has been a huge eye opener, about how much this actually happens to employees and passengers. Even more disjointing is how the cruise line industry typicaly handles it this way to avoid bad publicity.

[BelizeBreeze]

Originally Posted by bhughes2621

Thank you everyone. I contacted Charles Lipcon yesterday, and he has been a termendous help. He is now guiding my daughter through this difficult process.

This has been a huge eye opener, about how much this actually happens to employees and passengers. Even more disjointing is how the cruise line industry typicaly handles it this way to avoid bad publicity.

Now you can devote 100% to your daughter and let her attorney deal with the scum.

[JETX]

Originally Posted by bhughes2621

Thank you everyone.

Of course, you're welcome.
And we hope the best for your daughter....