Ferry Captain Ducks Charges By Cooperating

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The New York Sun

First he was silent for months, then he lied, but yesterday the captain responsible for the Staten Island ferry that crashed into a pier last October, killing 11 people, came clean as part of a deal that will allow him to avoid prosecution.


Ferry Captain Michael Gansas agreed to a three-year suspension of his pilot’s license, 200 hours of community service, and full cooperation with the U.S. attorney’s office in exchange for a three-year deferment of his prosecution on perjury charges.


If the government is happy with Mr. Gansas’s behavior at the end of three years, the charges will be officially dropped.


The U.S. attorney’s office would not comment on legal strategy, but many observers feel the agreement is part of the government’s case against the city’s director of ferry operations, Patrick Ryan.


Last week the ferry’s pilot, Richard Smith, pleaded guilty to 11 counts of maritime manslaughter, saying medication caused him to fall asleep at the wheel just before the crash. He and Mr. Gansas could testify against Mr. Ryan about their knowledge of the rule that said two pilots had to be in the wheelhouse during docking operations.


For months after the October 15, 2003 crash, Mr. Gansas refused to speak to investigators about his role in the accident, ultimately leading to the city’s decision to fire him. When he finally spoke, he insisted he was in the wheelhouse with Mr. Smith during the crash. Witnesses later told investigators they saw Mr. Smith alone, and Mr. Gansas on the other side of the ship.


Yesterday, after the arraignment, Mr. Gansas’s attorney, Robert Morvillo, read a statement outside the Brooklyn federal courthouse on his behalf that blamed the lies on “the stress of the moment” after the crash.


Mr. Gansas “made the mistake of attempting to deflect attention from Richard Smith. As the captain of the vessel, Mr. Gansas believed it was important to assume responsibility,” Mr. Morvillo said.


Mr. Morvillo went on to praise Mr. Gansas for taking control of the ferry, the Andrew J. Barberi, after the crash and dislodging it from the pier, preventing further loss of life.


Unfortunately for the prosecution, Mr. Gansas’s lies suggest that he knew about the two pilot rule, though Mr. Morvillo said the rule’s “existence is in dispute.”


One of the victims of the crash, Lloyd Joseph, attended the hearing. Mr. Joseph was on his way home from his construction job at the time of the crash. He broke five ribs, punctured a lung, had four broken and herniated disks, and still must walk with a cane because of injuries to his left foot.


“I’m confident with the way they’re handling the case,” he said yesterday. “They’re going right to the top.”


The bigger fish victim’s are looking to fry is Mr. Ryan. If prosecutors can prove the city was negligent in failing to enforce the rule, the possibility for victim’s damages is unlimited. If the city is not found culpable, an old maritime law limits total legal damages to the value of the ferry after repair, approximately $14.4 million. Victims have filed notices of claims in excess of $2.2 billion.


Mr. Gansas’s agreement doesn’t directly help the victims except insomuch as it helps convict Mr. Ryan.


The New York Sun

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