Our Client, a Cruise Crime Victim Speaks Out
The Charleston Gazzette published a story covering the cruise ship sexual assault of one of our maritime law firm's clients. Read the article below:
Kimberly Dean Edwards recounts how a fellow passenger sexually assaulted her in 2004. Now, with the help of some West Virginia lawmakers, she and the International Cruise Victims organization are battling for legislation to make cruise lines accountable.
August 30, 2006
Cruise crime victim gains political support for fight
By Sarah K. Winn
Staff writer
Kimberly Dean Edwards wanted to spend her 40th birthday relaxing on a four-day Royal Caribbean cruise.
“The first two days were a dream trip,” the Parkersburg resident said. “Now, I want my 40th birthday back.”
During her 2004 trip, Edwards said, a male passenger sexually assaulted her in a women’s restroom while two crew members watched and did nothing.
“What seemed to be innocent, drunken fun for him began the nightmare for me,” she said.
When the man first entered the women’s restroom, she laughed it off.
“‘You do know you are in the ladies’ room?’ I asked,” she said. After agreeing to pose for a picture with the man, the man began fondling her while another man snapped pictures, she said. Two ship employees, a man and woman, stood at the bathroom door, holding it open, she said.
Following the assault, she told her then boyfriend and now husband, Mike Edwards, who went to talk to the employees and security. For the next two days, they did little to help, even threatening to arrest her after she confronted the man who assaulted her, she said. The man was allowed to roam freely, although she was told he would be confined to his room, she said.
Edwards’ story is not unique. With the help of the International Cruise Victims organization, she is lobbying to make cruise lines responsible for the crimes that happen on board. And her efforts in West Virginia are paying off.
After Gov. Joe Manchin received a letter from Edwards, he sent letters to federal representatives encouraging them to talk to Edwards and support the efforts of the ICV.
“The governor’s primary concern is that all American citizens aboard [cruise ships] have all the protections available to the them by law,” said Manchin’s spokesman Tom Hunter. “Every constituent’s concern the governor takes very seriously.”
Manchin is the first governor to issue such support, Edwards said.
Also, Rep. Alan B. Mollohan, D-W.Va., has signed on to co-sponsor bill HR5707, which will require cruise lines to report crimes at sea within four hours or face heavy fines.
“No matter where or when a crime occurs, it should be fully investigated and prosecuted,” Mollohan said in a statement. “Unfortunately, many victims of cruise ship crimes have a different experience. Their ordeals have been made worse by callous treatment — or even disregard — from those who should have been assisting them. This legislation would ensure that crimes are reported and would begin to provide victims with the justice they deserve.”
- advertisement -Called the Cruise Line Accurate Safety Statistics Act, the bill was introduced in June by Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., with Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., as the original co-sponsor.
Now, Edwards wants other West Virginia legislators to get on board, especially Rep. Nick J. Rahall, D-W.Va., who serves on a transportation subcommittee. She wants Democratic Sens. Robert C. Byrd and Jay Rockefeller to propose a similar bill in the Senate, she said.
Edwards is already pursuing some recourse, with a civil suit pending in Miami against Royal Caribbean. She is also looking for a lawyer to help with a suit against her assailant before the statue of limitations runs out in October.
Her involvement with ICV has helped her battle the aftereffects of her assault, including nightmares and a fear of public restrooms. “I just felt so alone in this,” she said.
She has become close with the family of George Smith IV, who disappeared off a Royal Caribbean ship in July 2005. She wears a button with his picture. Smith is one of many who have disappeared while on cruises. She tells her story for those that can’t or don’t have the courage, she said.
“Every day, I look at their pictures on the Web site, they are the people that are gone,” she said with tears in her eyes. “I’m committed to changing the laws so cruise ships are held accountable and treat victims with the respect they deserve.”
