b'LEGISLATIVEREPORTof which were for the Seamans Manslaughter Act conviction).The Seamans Manslaughter Act reads in part:Every captain, engineer, pilot, or other person employed on any steamboat or vessel, by whose misconduct, negligence, or inattention to his duties on such vessel the life of any person is destroyed, and every owner, charterer, inspector, or other pubic offi cer, through whose fraud, neglect,EASY MANEUVERABILITYconnivance, misconduct, or violation of law the life of any person is destroyed, shallGive your passengers a smooth ride with reliable be fi ned under this title or imprisoned notJohn Deere PowerTech propulsion and generator more than ten years, or both. drive engines. With high torque and low-rated rpm, they deliver excellent vessel control and quiet Most criminal laws that addressoperation. For easy navigation on the water 60 to 559 kW (80 to 750 hp)the taking of a life require that theNothing Runs Like A Deere.defendant act intentionally or at least with gross negligence. Not so the Seamans Manslaughter Act; onlyJohnDeere.com/Marinea showing of simple negligence is required. This puts a powerful tool in the hands of a prosecutor and places the defendant at a severe legal disad-vantage.Another part of the Seamans Manslaughter Act authorizes charges against management officials if the vessel is owned by a corporation, but a conviction can be obtained only if the defendant is found to have acted knowingly and willfully.More recently, the law has been invoked in other casualties involving passenger-carrying vessels.Last year in Miami, a charter yacht was carrying passengers illegally. The captain failed to account for all pas-sengers who had gone swimming and inadvertently drove the vessel over an individual still in the water. Seamans Manslaughter charges were brought and convictions were obtained against the unlicensed captain and the yachts owner. The captain was sentenced to three years in jail. Its not evident that the owners sentence has yet been issued.In Missouri, charges have been filed against the captain, general manager, and operations supervisor associated with the 2018 casualty of the Stretch Duck 007, in which the am-phibious vessel capsized in a storm, and 17 persons drowned. These NOVEMBER 2019FOGHORN 35'