Judge rules against manslaughter charges over deadly duck boat accident in 2018

The judge ruled that not enough evidence had been provided to support the counts of involuntary manslaughter and child endangerment.

According to the New York Times, Judge Alan Blankenship wrote that prosecutors had not shown that the employees committed felony offenses by taking the boat out on Table Rock Lake before powerful thunderstorms struck.

On the other hand, state and local prosecutors argued at a preliminary hearing that the employees should not have taken the boat out on the lake as bad weather approached and that, if they were going to do so, they should have had the passengers wear flotation devices.

Nonetheless, the judge wrote that prosecutors had not provided “sufficient evidence” to show the intent required to prove the charges. As a result, the judge dismissed the case without prejudice, meaning that prosecutors could bring charges again.

The three employees were charged in July last year with a total of 63 criminal counts. Namely, the captain, the general manager, and the manager on duty, were among the 31 people on the boat when it sank on July 19, 2018.

An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board found that the employees had taken the boat, Stretch Duck 7, out on calm waters before winds picked up and heavy rain and lightning battered the region.

In hindsight, it is evident that the defendants did not have enough weather information to appreciate the threat of high winds

Judge Blankenship wrote.

He also said that their company, Ride the Ducks Branson, had relied on a widely used online weather tool, Earth Networks, to check the conditions before the tour and that it had showed an approaching storm but not strong winds.

Furthermore, according to the judge, there was no evidence that the captain had “an affirmative duty” to require passengers to wear flotation devices.

A federal judge also dismissed neglect and misconduct charges against the three employees in December 2020.