A jury has found a former captain guilty in the Conception boat fire that killed 33 passengers and a crew member four years ago.
(Santa Barbara County Fire Department via AP)
Jerry Boylan, 69, was found guilty Monday of one count of misconduct or neglect of ship officer, colloquially known as seaman’s manslaughter.
He faces up to 10 years in prison and is expected to be sentenced on Feb. 8.
“At first, I was happy but now it’s not really happiness it’s relief,” said James Adamic. “Nothing is going to bring our loved ones back to us.”
Adamic’s son, daughter and granddaughter were aboard the ship.
“I think, most importantly, is the message this sends to other captains, many of whom admitted operating recklessly,” said Adamic.
The fatal fire happened in the early morning hours of Sept. 2, 2019, while the dive boat was anchored off the shoreline of Santa Cruz Island, which is about 22 miles southwest of Santa Barbara.
A total of 39 people — 33 passengers and six crewmembers — were aboard the ship when it caught on fire. Those who were asleep below deck died as the blaze engulfed the vessel.
In October 2020, federal investigators announced that they could not determine what sparked the fire. They found that it began toward the back of the main deck salon area, where divers had plugged in phones, flashlights and other items with lithium-ion batteries.
The United States Attorney’s Office said Boylan failed to perform his duties as the captain by being the first crewmember to abandon the ship without using the public address system to warn the occupants about the fire. Additionally, federal prosecutors claimed that Boylan did not attempt to fight the fire with the onboard equipment — which included an extinguisher — and did not post a night watch, which allowed the blaze to spread through the vessel undetected.
“Mr. Boylan’s failure to carry out his duties as Captain of the Conception led to the catastrophic loss of 34 victims who suffered a horrifying death and perished needlessly in the end,” said Donald Alway, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office.
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