Body of Maritime Worker Found after Fall off Shrimping Boat
The body of a shrimper reported missing after he fell off a fishing boat, has been recovered from the Gulf of Mexico.
According to the South Padre Island Coast Guard station, they received a call on Wednesday morning from the crew of the shrimp boat, Matilda Tower, saying a man had fallen overboard. The crewmember was last seen at about 1:30 that morning. 
A helicopter search crew was sent out, and the body was spotted five miles off the coast of South Padre Island. A boat crew was sent to recover the body.
The crewman has been identified as Raul Gonzalez. According to some news reports, officers indicated that the body contained suspicious marks and that there was a possibility this would be treated as a homicide case. An autopsy has been ordered, and the FBI has been notified of the possibility of a homicide at sea.
Can assault result in a Jones Act claim?
Assault by a crewmember aboard a ship can be a basis for a Jones Act claim. That does not mean every case involving injury and assault by another seaman is eligible for damages, but there are many instances where the ship owner may be liable.
Previous precedents have held ship-owners liable for injuries to a seaman by other crewmembers. In an earlier maritime assault case, the ship owner was held liable for a seaman being stabbed to death by another crewmember. The ship owner was held liable for failing to prevent the assault. In case of assault by another crewmember, a seaman can also recover damages claiming unseaworthiness of the vessel or negligence.
Identifying Maritime Employer Negligence
Identifying employer negligence or proving unseaworthiness in an assault by a crewmember that results in injuries or death of a Jones Act seaman can be a complicated process. Juries and judges are likely to look, not only at the nature of injuries that occurred, but also at the circumstances surrounding the assault, the measures that the ship owners could have taken to prevent such an assault, the negligence of other crewmembers that could have contributed to an injurious assault, etc. In such cases, seamen will need expert representation by a maritime lawyer.
