Case Summary
Boating Incident Involving Serious Bodily Injury - Palm Beach County
FWSA-19-0FF-013781- Juvenil e Confidential

SYNOPSIS
On 11/28/19 (Thanksgiving Day), Carter Viss and Andrew Earl decided to go snorkeling on the reef
system north of The Breakers Hotel on the Island of Palm Beach. They arrived around 0930 hrs. and
entered the water to snorkel the first reef system (approx. 150 yards from shore). Mr. Viss had a dive
flag/buoy with a 25 - 30 ft white rope attached to his dive belt. Mr. Viss and Mr. Earl noticed two other
snorkel groups in their proximity with dive flags (one with a paddleboard and one with a kayak). Mr.
Viss and Mr. Earl had been snorkeling for a while when they started swimming towards shore.
At approximately 1147 hrs., Daniel Stanton II, his father (Mr. Daniel Stanton),

960 F.S.

960 F.S.

left Mr. Stanton's house located on the west side of

the Island of Palm Beach in Mr. Stanton ll's 36-foot Yellowfin center console for a pleasure cruise. After
exiting the inlet, Mr. Stanton II turned south and cruised along the beach near shore. Mr. Stanton II was
cruising in 15 - 20 feet of water at an average speed of 53 mph (at the closest point he was 475 feet
from shore) . Mr. Stanton II intended to run down to The Breakers, turn around, and head home.
At approximately 1204 hrs., Mr. Stanton II was passing offshore of Everglades Ave. and N. Ocean Blvd .
Mr. Stanton II first realized there were divers in the water when they were 30 foot to port, so he
powered down and turned inshore. When Mr. Viss realized the vessel was heading straight towards
him, he attempted to swim away but was struck by the vessel. Mr. Viss stated the vessel went between
him and his dive flag.
After the vessel struck Mr. Viss, it slowed to a stop about 200 yards south of the snorkelers. Mr. Viss
returned to the surface, started screaming, and was having trouble staying afloat due to his injuries. Mr.
Earl swam over to Mr. Viss to help hold him up and immediately started yelling for help. Realizing
someone had gotten injured, Mr. Stanton II pulled his vessel back over to Mr. Viss and helped get Mr.
Viss onto the back of the vessel. Mr. Stanton II provided a first-aid kit so they could start applying
tourniquets to Mr. Viss' arm and legs before beaching his boat onshore to meet EMS personnel. Mr.
Viss was transported by EMS to St. Mary's Medical Center.

INVESTIGATION
CHRONOLOGY OF INVESTIGATION

12/02/19
•

At approximately 0840 hrs., I, Inv. David Fowler, of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Commission (FWC) heard FWC Inv. Luher en route to St. Mary's Medical Center.

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 •

At approximately 0841 hrs., I called Inv. Luher to offer my assistance.
o Inv. Luher provided me with basic information regarding the incident and requested my
assistance with several interviews.

•

At approximately 1028 hrs., I received a call from Lt. Carcasses requesting I take over as lead
investigator for the incident due to Inv. Luher having pre-scheduled leave.

•

At approximately 1400 hrs., I met with Inv. Lu her at the FWC Jupiter Office and obtained copies
of the incident paperwork and additional information regarding the incident.
o Inv. Lu her emailed me the link to a website where Carter Viss' family was maintaining a
journal of his incident/recovery: https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/carterviss/journal
o Inv. Luher sent me an email identifying Douglas Duncan, Esquire as the criminal attorney
for Daniel Stanton II.

•

I reviewed the written statements that were obtained the day of the incident. The following
information was obtained: (For complete statement, see attached)
o

Town of Palm Beach Police Department {PBPD) Officer Machate
• Ofc. Machate responded to the scene and obtained witness statements.
•

o

Andy
•
•
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while it was being towed to Phil Foster Park.
Earl
Mr. Earl stated, "We were snorkeling about 150 yards offshore when I heard a
large noise."
Mr. Earl stated, " I looked up and saw a large boat going very fast about 25 feet
from me."
Mr. Earl stated, "After the boat passed by, I saw Carter screaming and couldn't
stay above water and was bleeding badly."

•
•

Mr. Earl stated, "I saw his right arm was severed around the elbow."
Mr. Earl stated, "I had to hold him above the water because his legs were cut
badly too ."

•

Mr. Earl stated, "I started screaming for help and the boat that had hit him came
back."
Mr. Earl stated, "We loaded Carter onto the back of the boat, and they applied a
tourniquet to his arm and both legs."

•
o

Ofc. Machate boarded the incident vessel and maintained custody of the vessel

Christine Raininger
•
Ms. Raininger stated, "Yellowfin boat Talley Girl was traveling at a high speed,
over 30 mph on plane within 100 feet of 3 diver down flags - 3 groups of
snorkelers."
• Ms. Raininger stated she waved and yelled when the boat passed her group.
•
Ms. Raininger stated the boat driver was wearing a white shirt and visor.
• Ms. Raininger stated, "After boater passed us, he struck a snorkeler with a dive
flag at the surface.
• Ms. Raininger stated she paddled over and heard yelling, moaning from the
victim, and saw blood in the water.
•

Ms. Raininger stated the boat slowed and turned around .

•

Ms. Raininger stated she got to the boat and victim and helped lift Carter
(victim) onto the back of the boat.

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•

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Ms. Raininger stated, "I held Carter's severed arm to stop or slow the bleeding."
Ms. Raininger stated, "I told the boaters where we were because they called
911."
Thiago Barosa:
•
•
•

Mr. Barosa stated, " I made contact with coast guard when they asked if I had
seen the victim's arm."
Mr. Barosa stated, "After they explained what happened I searched and found
an arm, dive flag, weight belt and net."
Mr. Barosa stated, " I flagged down Coast Guard and gave them the arm and
net."

119.071(3)(a) and 281.301, F.S

•

I reviewed FWC Inv. Patterson's supplemental narrative and obtained the following information:
(For complete narrative, see attached)
o Victim: Carter Julien Viss (DOB 08/03/94)
o Treating physician : Dr. Borrego
o Initial injury assessment:
• Right arm - amputated and 25% remains intact
• Right knee - dislocated and severe lacerations
• Left palm - 4-inch laceration and dislocation
• Left leg - multiple fractures and deep lacerations
•
o

Critical condition and life threatening

Notification of next of kin made by RN Terri Lynn at 2:0Spm to Charles and Leila Viss, the
victim's parents.
•

Charles and Leila Viss (720-560-9434)

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At approximately 1502 hrs., I called FWC Capt. Clark regarding access to the permanent FWC
Jupiter Evidence Compound on 12/3/19 to inventory the incident vessel and obtain data
downloads from the engines and GPS units.

•

At approximately 1509 hrs., I spoke to Mike Parramore (Service Manager at Nautical Ventures
Marine in North Palm Beach, 561-612-7076) to schedule a mechanic for the engine downloads
for the morning of 12/3/19.

•

At approximately 1515 hrs., Inv. Luher informed me Lt. Alber with the Town of Palm Beach
Police Department {PBPD) would be at the FWC Jupiter Evidence Facility at 0900 hrs. on
12/03/19 to perform the GPS download for his report.

12/03/19
•

At approximately 0900 hrs., FWC Inv. Coffin and I obtained access to the vessel in the FWC
Jupiter Evidence Compound.
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o

The vessel is a white and teal 36 ft. 2008 Yellowfin center console (HIN #:
YFY36186D808) .
• The vessel is U.S. Coast Guard Documented under the name Talley Girl (DO
#:1284973).
• The vessel is powered by three 400Hp Mercury Verado outboard engines with 5
blade Mercury props (15 Xx 22.5) .
While Inv. Coffin observed, Robert Silver (mechanic from Nautical Ventures) performed
the engine downloads on the three motors utilizing the engine diagnostics port on the
center console.
• The mechanic informed Inv. Coffin the motors had high performance lower
units.

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•
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Mr. Silver provided me with printouts of the three motors.
There were no faults and no saved data from the time of the incident on the
motors.

•

Mr. Silver called Mercury and was told the motors would only record data if
there was an engine fault.

While Inv. Coffin observed, Lt. Alber performed the GPS downloads on the three GPS
units.
•

o

o

Data from each unit was saved on a SD card, which was entered into the FWC
Jupiter Evidence Facility.

•
Lt. Alber took a working copy of the data for his reports.
I took additional pictures of the vessel and conducted an inventory of the items left on
the vessel (see attached) .
• The Garmin VIRB camera on the rear of the T-top was on and flashing "no card"
I did not observe any new/fresh damage to the vessel or the motors from the incident.
•

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The lower unit on the center motor had a jagged chunk missing from the front
of the skeg - the metal was weathered and was not new damage.
Inv. Coffin provided me with a copy of the Palm Beach Police Department Event Report
(Event ID: 2019-332-108 Call Ref#: 505)

•
•

Initial 911 phone call was received at 12:05:47 .
Victim brought to shore at 12:12:43.

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Sea Tow arrived at 12:53:45 and left for Phil Foster Park with boat at 13:09:27.
Made notification with parents at 13:50:39.

o

At approximately 1507 hrs., Inv. Luher provided me with U.S. Coast Guard reports
regarding the incident. (see attached)

o

At approximately 1654 hrs., Inv. Luher informed me she scheduled a telephone
interview with Patrick Ohannessian at 1330 hrs. on 12/04/19, and an interview with
Kristin Lopopolo at 1430 hrs. on 12/04/19.
At approximately 1916 hrs., I received an email from Inv. Lu her providing Carter Viss'
parents with the Victim and Witness Rights Information Brochure reference Marsy's
Law.

o

12/04/19
•

It was mentioned the vessel had been featured on "Florida Sportsman Project Dreamboat".
o I located two YouTube videos featuring the vessel (July 25, 2019 and August 22, 2019).

•

I obtained wind/weather conditions from:
o NOAA National Data Buoy Center ( https://www.ndbc. noaa.gov/ ) for USCG Station Lake
Worth on 11/28/19 at 1206 hrs.
•

o

Wind direction: 297 degrees (towards ESE), Wind speed: 3.1 m/s (6.9 mph),
Wind gusts: 4.0 m/s (8.9 mph), Air temp: 18.7 C (65.6 F), Water temp: 26.3 C
(79.3 F)
Sailflow.com ( https://sailflow.com/spot/493 ) for Lake Worth Pier
•

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Wind speed: Approx. 11-12 mph, Air temp: 77 F, Water temp: 79 F, High tide:
9:0lam, Low tide: 3:13pm

At approximately 1000 hrs., I reviewed the Inv. Coffin's bodycam video of the recorded
statement of Daniel W. Stanton (father). The following information was obtained:
o

They were heading south when he saw a boat with a dive flag about 80 yards to their
left.

o
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The boat was at their 10/11 o'clock position.
He pointed it out to Daniel Stanton II (son), who immediately powered down.
He did not see divers on a direct line where they were going.
960 F.S. saw someone in the water near their boat.
They circled around and saw the injured person.
He yelled, "call 911."
He saw a woman on a paddleboard coming over.
He didn't know where she came from.
Daniel Stanton II pulled out a first aid kit to give aid.
They took the injured person to shore and the ambulance.

o
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They left the house around 11:30ish.
They were about 400 yards out.

o
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Water was not very choppy with a good breeze from the north (approx. 20mph)
They passed boats coming in the inlet and there were big boats offshore.

At approximately 1000 hrs., I reviewed the Inv. Luher's bodycam video of the Mirandized
recorded statement of Daniel W. Stanton II (operator). The following information was obtained:
o He stated he had drunk half of a Truly.

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He explained it was seltzer water with alcohol in it.
They went for a pleasure cruise.

o

It was the operator, his father,

o
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They were planning to run out the inlet, down to the Breakers, and return home.
He was running at 4900 - 5000 rpm, about 50- 52 mph, which was his "cruise speed".
He bought the boat about 1 Yi years ago and just had work done at Two Rivers
Boatworks.

o
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He was trying to optimize the performance and a friend loaned him 5 blade props.
They were runn ing in 15 - 20 ft. of water.

o
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The GPS was on.
He stated he previously had a 6-pack Captain's License.

o

He stated, "Just didn't see them. Just driving the boat. Looking around."

o
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He first realized there were divers in the water when they were 30 ft. to the port.
He immediately went to neutral.

o

o
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He said there were two groups of divers: 1 with 8 people and a buoy flag (no boat, just
a paddle board); and 1 with 3-4 divers (group he struck) about 100 yds inland from the
other group.
He stated he was immediately looking around the boat and he saw a couple more divers
to the port, so he turned inshore to avoid them .
He stated he thinks the diver was hit as he came down (from plane).
He stated he saw blood in the water and heard screaming.

o

He came around and started giving aid.

o

•

960 F.S.

960 F.S.

At approximately 11:13 hrs., I received a call from Lt. Alber who had spoken to a friend that was
a Mercury specialist.
o

The Mercury specialist told him to obtain engine data, the system must be plugged
directly into each motor.

o

The Mercury specialist stated the motor would report the last 100 seconds of run time
with the following detail level (100 - 20 seconds: rough data, 20 - 10 seconds: moderate
details, 10 - O seconds: highly detailed).
Lt . Alber stated according to the GPS data the motors ran more than 100 seconds after
the incident prior to being shut down.

o
o

Based on this information, any run-time data obtained from the engines would have
been recorded after the incident.

•

At approximately 1231 hrs., I was informed by Inv. Luher of changes in time/location for Ms.
Lopopolo's and Mr. Ohanessian's interviews.

•

At approximately 1327 hrs., I received an email from Lt. Alber with an image showing
preliminary findings from the GPS data.
o

•

The image showed an incident site approximately 700 foot offshore of Everglades Ave .
and N. Ocean Blvd. at GPS coordinates N26 43.354, W80 01.919.

At approximately 1333 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Kristin Lopopolo at the
corner of S. County Rd and Peruvian Ave., utilizing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline
(FWCDLE 012 (01/08)). Inv. Luher was present for the statement. The following information

6

 was obtained: (For complete statement, see attached) (audio recorder and body camera were
used to document the statement)
o

Ms. Lopopolo stated, "Twice a day, every day, seven days a week, I go to the beach
that's right by my street."

o

Ms. Lopopolo stated, "Around noon, I started walking to the beach on Thanksgiving
Day."

o

Ms. Lopopolo stated, "As I was standing on Root Trail, right where the beach access is, I
heard this life altering scream. I heard it and I said, "Oh my god, somebody just got

o

hurt." It wasn't a child's play scream; it was a cry for help."
Ms. Lopopolo stated, "And then when we sat down, I looked, and we saw Police coming
onto the beach . Which is normal. The cops are always patrolling that entrance. But
then I noticed there were a lot of them rushing onto the beach ."

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Ms. Lopopolo stated, " I noticed there was a boat when I was setting my beach chair up.
I noticed that there was a big boat very close to shore. Didn't realize anything was going
on. Then I remember the cops signaling the boat to come to shore."
Ms. Lopopolo stated, " From the time I got onto the beach to when the cops were
waving the boat in was maybe 10 minutes had gone by. From the point when I heard
the scream, twelve to fifteen minutes."
Ms. Lopopolo stated, "Then I saw the boat come in. It was beached. I saw Carter being
taken over the side of the boat. That's when I saw that his right arm was gone. I saw
that his legs were mangled. It was in my perfect line of view."
Ms. Lopopolo stated, "I ran over to three people. One was a girl and when I got up to
her to see if she wanted my bottle of water, she said no. And she went like this: arm is
gone, slash here and this leg is mangled. And I knew what she was talking about. She
was just saying it out loud, not necessarily to me. And there was I guy who I don't know
if it was Carter's diving partner or hers, but he took the bottle of water I offered them .
And he was holding dive flags. He was holding snorkels and fins."
Ms. Lopopolo stated, "Then when it came to the boat. As it was beached, I noticed a
man with a green t-shirt come off and he rushed off the beach with two little kids
(maybe 5 or 6 years old). And he said out loud, "I want to have nothing to do with this.
I'm leaving." And he darted off the beach."
Ms. Lopopolo stated, "And then I noticed there was a man on the boat in a black polo
and jeans. He is the father of the driver. He sat on the boat the whole time, no
expression on his face, nothing. His son was off of the boat, and just standing by the
boat while the cops were dealing with trying to get Carter off the beach."
Ms. Lo po polo stated, "The girl who came off the boat, who I offered my water bottle to,
she was asking the cops to check the propeller because she knew that his arm was
somewhere in the water."

o

Ms. Lopopolo stated, "So, I stepped back and was watching on, and then I noticed that
in the water there was a kayak waving. A fireman with his full gear dove into the water,
swam out. It was the arm. A fire woman ran down with the hazmat bag, gave it to him.
He swam out. They got the arm in. After that, everyone was shocked on the beach."

o

Ms. Lopopolo stated, "When I was walking on Root Trail, I do remember seeing the
boat. And I go to this beach twice a day every day, boats are never this close."

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When she was asked if the boat was just sitting in the water when she first saw it from
Root Trail, Ms. Lopopolo stated, " I think, yeah."

o

When asked how far from shore the boat was, Ms. Lopopolo stated, "I' m so bad with
distances. It was close. It was very close. I'm a swimmer and I swim out there with my
cap and goggles on and I get nervous even being right by the shore break. It was close."
When asked to describe the boat, Ms. Lopopolo stated, "It had three engines. It was
big. It was like an offshore fishing boat. A center console. White with a teal/sea foamy
blueish color on the bottom."

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Ms. Lopopolo stated, "I did not see it moving, so I don't know what speed they were
going."

o

Ms. Lopopolo stated, "I've driven boats - been out on boats plenty times before, and
we're way far out. Especially on a holiday, when people are off enjoying the
beach/swimming."

o

When asked how many people were out there that day, Ms. Lopopolo stated, "When I
got onto the beach, there were a few swimmers. Not many. Mostly everybody was on
the beach . It was kinda cold that day. Not super cold, but the water was chilly."
Ms. Lopopolo stated, "Normally when I go that beach, I'm the only person on the beach.
That day there were probably ... I mean I saw like five tents of families. And there were
couples with chairs sprinkling the beach. There were definitely more than fifty."
When asked if she could see anybody out in the water near the reef, Ms. Lopopolo
stated, "The only person that I saw in the water was the kayak. And I noticed them

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after. No other boats. I don't remember seeing other boats."
When asked about the weather, Ms. Lopopolo stated, "Wind, I don't remember. I don't
remember there being wind. But I remember when I rushed towards the firemen.
When I ran to one of the cops, I got stung by a bee on my toe and the bees are only out
on the beach when it's a west wind."
When asked about the water, Ms. Lopopolo stated, " Really flat. Kinda flattens the
water out. Very clear. Very clear. I had my cap and goggles with me. I intended on
going to the beach to swim and read my book. On a clear day like that, everybody goes
out there to swim."
Ms. Lopopolo stated she checked the geolocation for lnstagram to see if anyone posted
any photos. Her neighbor, Samantha Cerny, who like her is at the beach twice a day
everyday with her dog posted a video which was right before. She asked her neighbor
to send it to her because the paddleboarder looks like the girl that came off of the boat.

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When asked if this was a common area to snorkel off the beach, Ms. Lopopolo stated,
"Yes, especially outside of The Breakers because it's very famous for being able to see
sea turtles. I grew up here, so ever since I was a little girl, I've been out there with a
snorkel mask diving. There's a beautiful reef behind The Breakers. And people from
Jupiter and south all come to go and snorkel that reef."
Statement was concluded at 1356 hrs.

o

Ms. Lo po polo marked locations on a map of the area during her statement.

I obtained the Incident Reports, CAD reports, Photos, and 911 recording from Town of Palm
Beach Police Department. The following information was obtained: (see attached for full
report)

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PBPD Case Number 19-001549 - Ofc. Augustin Narrative:
•
•
•

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I was tasked to keep the occupants of the boat separate from each other until
the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation (FWC) investigators arrived on scene.
Shortly thereafter, the boat operator's mother, Mary Stanton (W/F DOB:
10/10/1952) arrived on scene to console her son.
As she embraced her son, Daniel Stanton (W/M DOB: 02/14/1989), he began to
weep and spontaneously stated he was driving the boat and looking left and

right, but he did not see the dive flags or any divers in the area of the crash.
PBPD Case Number 19-001549 - Ofc. Dejesse Narrative:
•

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I observed five individuals on the boat and made contact with the occupants of
the boat.
• I asked who the driver of the boat was, W/M Daniel Stanton DOB 02/14/1989
stated he was the driver of the boat.
• Stanton provided me with the boat registration and driver license.
• Stanton stated, " he did not see the divers in the water."
PBPD Case Number 19-001549 - Det. Burgoon Narrative:
• The first witness I took a sworn audio/video recorded statement from was
Christine Raininger (W/F DOB 12/18/1990 phone# 772-228-4800)
•

Raininger said that she was out snorkeling in the area with a dive flag
present during the time of the accident and observed a boat traveling
southbound at a high rate of speed within 100 feet of three visible dive
flags.

•

Raininger stated that she yelled at the boat as it passed and observed
that the driver of the boat was wearing a white shirt and a white visor.

•

Raininger said that after the boat passed her, she heard the victim yell
and she got onto her paddle board and paddled over to him to assist.

•

•

Raininger said that once she got to Viss, she assisted Earl with applying
pressure to Viss' injuries and helped load him onto the boat.
The second witness I took a sworn audio/video statement from was Andrew Earl
(W/M DOB 08/26/1984 phone# 309-230-7568) who stated that he was out
diving with Viss during the incident and that he was approximately 25 feet away
from Viss when Viss was struck by the boat.
•

Earl stated that after Viss was struck by the boat he swam to Viss and
assisted in keeping him afloat.

•

Earl said that after the boat struck Viss it turned around and came back
to help.

•

Earl stated that he and another diver in the area lifted Viss onto the
back of the boat and began to apply pressure to Viss' injuries.

•
•

Earl stated that he and Viss were utilizing a dive flag at the time of the
incident.

I contacted two of the reporting parties who called 911, Lynne Rogers and
Shayna Rogers.
•

S. Rogers said that while she was on the beach, she heard someone
yelling from the water to call 911.
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S. Rogers said that she ran to her mother L. Rogers and told her to call
911.

PBPD Case Number 19-001549 - Ofc. Machate Narrative:
• Upon my arrival, Palm Beach Fire Rescue was already on scene.
•

I observed a white and blue Yellowfin vessel named "Talley Girl" being
operated by a white male, approximately 30 years of age.

•

The male, later identified via FL DL as Daniel Stanton W/M DOB
02/14/89, beached the vessel.

•

On scene, I contacted Andrew Earl W/M DOB 08/26/84 and Christine Raininger
W/F DOB 12/18/90, who advised they were diving with Viss and witnessed the
entire incident.
•

Earl and Raininger stated they were diving approximately 100 yards
offshore with Viss.

•

They stated they did have their dive flags set up near them as they were
diving.

•

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Both parties advised as they were in the water, the vessel was traveling
south "at a high rate of speed", and the propeller of the boat hit Viss
causing his injuries.
Sea Tow arrived on scene to remove the vessel from the beach.
•

At this time, I was tasked to board the vessel named "Talley Girl" and
maintain a chain of custody.

•

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Sea Tow removed the vessel from the scene and towed the vessel to
Phil Foster Memorial Park.
As I arrived at Phil Foster Memorial Park, Florida Wildlife Conservation Officers
arrived on scene.
•

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At this time, the vessel was turned over to FWC Officer Riggs for further
investigation.

At approximately 1425 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Patrick Ohannessian. The
statement was taken by telephone at the Town of Palm Beach Police Department, utilizing the
FWC Recorded Statement Outline (FWCDLE 012(01/08)) . Inv. Luher was present for the
statement. The following information was obtained: (For complete statement, see attached)
(audio recorder was used to document the statement)
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Mr. Ohannessian stated, "When I got to the beach path, I heard a very loud scream. I
didn't really connect what it was. I didn't pay too much attention to it."
Mr. Ohannessian stated, " I met with my girlfriend when I got to the beach walk. We
both walked down the walk and put our chairs down near the water. And as I looked
out, I saw a boat. I remember asking myself, "Why is this boat so close to shore?"."
Mr. Ohannessian stated, "About ten minutes later, I heard some sirens. I said to my
girlfriend, "There must be something going on because there's sirens and this boat is
right here so close to shore." I saw fire attendants running to the beach with
telephones and loudly asking the boat to come to shore."
Mr. Ohannessian stated it took a little while for them to come to shore.
Mr. Ohannessian stated, "I heard someone on the boat yell to the police officers that it
was a prop that "He got hit with a prop. He got hit with a prop."."
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Mr. Ohannessian stated "They took the victim off the beach and my girlfriend saw him
and said, " Oh Patrick, he has no arm. This is like really serious. And his leg is dangling."
I did not want to look. I took one picture from a distance. I didn't want that in my
memory."

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Mr. Ohannessian stated there was a man with a black shirt on the boat that was
probably in his 60' s that didn't really seem to care too much about what was going on.

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Mr. Ohannessian stated there was a younger fellow that looked like he was traumatized.
Mr. Ohannessian stated, "There was another fellow with a green shirt with two children

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that got off the boat. He was sta nding right beside me when he got off the boat. And
he didn't seem interested to help in any way. Except that he just wanted to get his
children off the boat."
Mr. Ohannessian stated, "I noticed the younger guy that was probably the guy who was
driving the boat was very very traumatized ."
When asked how close the boat was, Mr. Ohannessian stated, "Not more than a few
hundred yards."

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When asked if he saw the boat moving, Mr. Ohannessian stated, "No, it was sitting in
the water where they collected the victim."
When asked if he saw dive flags or other gear out there, Mr. Ohannessian stated, "Dive
flags. And I saw dive flags. Definitely saw dive flags. I definitely saw paddleboards.
There were paddleboards and there were dive flags."
Mr. Ohannessian stated, "And I saw the dive flag come back also with the kayaker.
Brought back the dive flag. When he found (garbled), he also found the dive flag.
Brought back. And he gave the dive flag to the fire official."
When asked how many people were on the beach that day, Mr. Ohannessian stated, "It
was pretty crowded . Abnormally crowded."
When asked if he saw any other boats, Mr. Ohannessian stated, "I saw the Coast Guard
that came after. That's it. That's all I saw. I saw some boats that were miles away. Like
sailboats, that were really really far away. But I didn't see any other boats in that
proximity."

o

When asked what the weather and water conditions were, Mr. Ohannessian stated,
"Very early in the morning it was like a lake. And when I got there later, when the
incident happened, it was there was a little bit of a wake, but it was still like la key. Very
clear day. Very sunny."

o

Mr. Ohannessian stated, "The flags looked new. The flags were red, and the stripes
were white. They weren't old flags. They weren't old ratty faded flags. They were
brand new flags."
When asked if the water was clear, Mr. Ohannessian stated, "It was not murky. It was
clear."

o
o

When asked about the person that stated, "It's a prop", Mr. Ohannessian stated, "The
guy that screamed, "It was a prop. It was a prop." was a gentleman with a white shirt.
He had shorts and a hat on his head. He had a visor. He was probably the driver. He
was very traumatized."

11

 o

o

When asked if that was a frequent area for snorkelers, Mr. Ohannessian stated, "It's a
frequent area for divers. Yes, I've often seen divers. Swimmers also. There are a lot of
divers. I see flags. I see paddleboarders."
Mr. Ohannessian stated, "And I mean, if you see a paddleboard with a flag, I mean kinda
hard to miss. A flag alone, maybe. Just one flag, but a paddleboard with a person on

o
•

top and a flag. And it wasn't the only flag. There were other flags. Other groups that
were there with flags also. There wasn't only one flag in the water. There was like a
group of flags, and there was a paddleboarder on the board. So, it's kinda hard to find
an excuse for going into that pack."
Statement was concluded at 1442 hrs.

119.071(3)(a) and 281.301, F.S

o

Contact was made with several people walking along roadway that knew people who
observed the incident.
•

•

I provided my contact information and asked them to pass on the information.

At approximately 1734 hrs., Inv. Luher and I arrived at St. Mary's Medical Center to check on
Carter Viss.
o Carter Viss was out of the room for a procedure and his parents were not at the
hospital.

12/05/19
•

119.071(3)(a) and 281.301, F.S

•

•
•

At approximately 1331 hrs., Inv. Luher included me in an email to Douglas Duncan regarding the
return of non-essential items from Mr. Stanton ll's vessel.

•

At approximately 1825 hrs., Inv. Luher sent me an email identifying Greg Barnhart, Attorney at
Law, as the civil attorney for Carter Viss.

12

 •

At approximately 2121 hrs., I received an email from Kristin Lopopolo with a link to the
photos/videos taken by Mr. Ohannessian.
o The photos showed the vessel on the beach with EMS, PBPD, and the vessel occupants.
o The video showed EMS paddling out to the USCG vessel to retrieve Mr. Viss' arm.
o

•

The video also showed numerous people on the beach.

At approximately 2138 hrs., I received an email from Kristin Lopopolo stating she received
authorization to provide the video taken by Samantha Cerny (mentioned during interview) and
provided a link to the video.
o The video showed the water conditions and a group with a paddle board and dive flag
heading out from shore.

12/06/19
•

At approximately 0641 hrs., I received an email from attorney Greg Barnhart requesting he be
present for Carter Viss' statement.

•

At approximately 0923 hrs., I emailed Chuck Viss and Mr. Barnhart requesting a possible
statement with Carter Viss later in the afternoon.

•

At approximately 1249 hrs., I called Chuck Viss and left a message checking Carter Viss'
condition and checking the possibility of meeting for a recorded statement.
o At approximately 1309 hrs., Chuck Viss called me and stated Carter Viss was out for a
procedure.
o At approximately 1523 hrs., Chuck Viss called and stated Carter Viss was worn out from
the procedure and unable to give a statement.
o Mr. Viss scheduled a statement for Sunday (12/08/19) at 1300 hrs.

12/07/19
•

At approximately 1130 hrs., Ms. Lopopolo called and stated she had returned to the beach and
wanted to alter the location she marked on the map during her statement.
o I asked Ms. Lopopolo to send me the new information in an email.
o At approximately 1207 hrs., I received an email from Ms. Lopopolo stating: The boat was
closer to shore than the first buoy. The boat was west of the first buoy.

12/08/19
•

At approximately 1049 hrs., I called Mr. Chuck Viss to confirm the meeting for the recorded
statement.
o Mr. Viss stated Carter Viss had been moved to a new room and was getting more rest;
however, he was placed on new medication and was not up to a statement.
o Mr. Viss stated he had sent an email canceling the appointment, and I explained I had
not received it because I was not working at the time.
o Since I would be unavailable the week of December l61h, we agreed to reschedule the
statement for the week of December 23'd.

12/09/19
•

At approximately 1505 hrs., I picked up a CD from the PBSO Public Records office.

13

 o

The CD contained a 911 call from FWC dispatch requesting assistance from a PBSO
Marine Unit to help secure the incident scene, and the PBSO CAD report documenting
the call.

•

•

119.071(3)(a) and 281.301, F.S

At approximately 2103 hrs., I was forwarded an email from Mr. Duncan to Inv. Luher that was
dated 12/06/19 at 1019 hrs.
o The email stated Mr. Duncan would obtain written authorization from Mr. Stanton II for
the release of the non-essential items to Mr. Duncan's office.
o The email stated they had been informed Mr. Viss had obtained counsel and he would
need to discuss with Mr. Viss' counsel regarding any issues they had with the return of
the items.
o The email requested a list of the non-essential items to be returned .
o Inv. Luher responded to the email at 2106 hrs. and referred Mr. Duncan to Lt. Carcasses
or I while she was out of the office.

12/10/19
•

At approximately 0854 hrs., I received an email from Mr. Duncan regarding his request to Inv.
Lu her for a list of the non-essential items to be returned.

•

At approximately 1305 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Christine Raininger at the
FWC Regional Office, utilizing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline (FWCDLE 012(01/08)). Inv.
Phillips was present for the statement. The following information was obtained: (For complete
statement, see attached) (audio recorder and body camera were used to document the
statement)
o Ms. Raininger stated, "I went out there that day with three of my friends. We went out
to snorkel. I brought my paddleboard to put my gear on. So, we were also towing that."
o Ms. Raininger stated, "We got there just after 10. We probably got in the water just
after 10:30."
o

o

o

o

Ms. Raininger stated, "Went out from Root Trail. From there went west to the second
reef. Snorkel, dive, scuba, floated along there for a little while. I stayed under probably
20 minutes. My friends were at the surface with the dive flag and held my paddleboard
for a while ."
Ms. Raininger stated, "Started coming back inshore to head back south along the inner
reef. I took my scuba gear off and put it on my paddleboard because it was shallow
enough I could free dive confidently."
Ms. Raininger stated, "We were coming back south along the inner reef and we were
almost back to what would be parallel to Root Trail on 12-15 ft of water. Once we got
almost back to Root Trail where we would have been traveling in again, we did pass two
more divers/snorkelers. They had a double kayak with a dive flag perched atop.
Attached to the kayak, so it was even higher out of the water."
Ms. Raininger stated, "My friend Justin, we were at the surface talking and he's like,
" Look at this guy." And a boat, I'm looking to the west, so he was inshore from the reef

14

 passed us. Very fast. Probably heard him only five seconds before we saw him. He was
on plane. It was the boat with the three engines. Huge boat."
o

Ms. Raininger stated, "Just before. I started waving my hands. Maybe 50 ft and then he
passed probably within 30 ft. as close to us. And I'm waving and screaming. We're in
the water, but I have fins on. I'm a competitive swimmer. We had our dive flag. So, I
just was like waving and screaming."

o

Ms. Raininger stated, "There were three adult men on the boat - green shirt, black shirt,
white shirt. The black shirt and white shirt were in the back. They both looked at me.
And kind of like raised their arms. And I don't know if it was like a...or a...this, but
they acknowledged me."
Ms. Raininger stated, "I operate a boat too, so I know what the engine sounds like when
you pull back on the throttle. So, if it was like full throttle, they may have started to pull
back like that. And you can't just yank back and stop a boat. After they acknowledged
me, like maybe just past me, I heard the throttle back a little bit."
Ms. Raininger stated, "And before that I knew that there were more divers in the water
just past that. And they were going in. They had just left the reef headed back to shore.

o

o

o

o

o

o

o

o

o

So, they were a little bit closer in. I saw that he passed by like on top of the dive flag."
Ms. Raininger stated, "I was still screaming as they passed. I saw that they had, I
assume, collided. He really slowed down. He started to take a turn . I get up on my
paddleboard. And I just paddled over really fast. The boat is making a turn back to
them ."
Ms. Raininger stated, I can see that the two guys are there. Andy was holding Carter
from behind . There was lots of trail of blood. I couldn't see his body yet. But I got to
him, jumped in the water.
Ms. Raininger stated, "I saw that Andy lifted his stump of an arm up. Saw that it was
severed above here. Held onto it. I told Andy that we need to stem the blood or tie a
tourniquet, or something like that. I told him what I was doing. Carter is still fully
conscious. Moaning. He's conscious. Everything."
Ms. Raininger stated, at this time the boat came back. He must have turned around at
some point cause his stern was pointed towards us. And he was backing up towards us.
Andy and I had to shout and yell at him to turn his engines off. Made sure that his
engine was off before we got close and had to swim to the edge of the stern. It had a
flat end before the outboard engines.
Ms. Raininger stated, "Just before I jump off my paddleboard in the water. I see that
the guy in the black shirt is on the phone. I just assume that he was on 911. He was
looking around and I said, "We're just north of The Breakers."."
Ms. Raininger stated, "I got on the boat. I had my bungee cord, but they had pulled the
first aid kit out. So, we pulled gauze or compression strap. We tied that around, while
Andy was holding Carter in the water. We pull him up and we realize his legs are badly
hit. So, Andy helped support his legs as we get them in. Lay him down on his back on
the stern. And he's still moaning and saying his life is over. We tried to calm him
down."
M s. Raininger stated, "I look to the beach and I'm holding his head at this point and I tell
him " the ambulance is here. We're just going to take you in now." Andy got in the
boat. We're still on that back flat deck outside of the boat. So, Andy and I sort of hold

15

 towards us, while they put the engines on. I instructed the boat operator, "You need to
beach it, but you need to go really slow. And you have to basically turn off the engine."
And I may have repeated myself because I didn't get a response. And the black shirt
older man said, " He knows what he's doing." And I looked at him and I said, "Oh
really." ."
o

o

o
o
o
o
o
o

o

When asked about the weather conditions, Ms. Raininger stated, "I can give my
estimate . I really think NOAA and Magicseaweed.com will have the best conditions
scientifically. It was flat. The wind was low. There were no wave heights. Certainly, no
wave height that would obscure a dive flag. The water was so clear. It was great
snorkeling conditions. I can show you my video I took and pictures I took from my
GoPro I had on my wrist that day. Sunny. I'm pretty sure the skies were completely
clear. It happened at about .. .I think it was 12:20 or so. The sun was high up in the sky.
I don't believe there would have been an opportunity for glare or blinding."
When asked about the direction of the drift, Ms. Raininger stated, "I believe the drift
was slightly south because it was a little bit easier to come south but it was very slight.
And also, because the boat when they turned around. The boat was south of us and the
boat was slightly moving south of us when we were bringing Carter to the boat.
When asked how far out she was, Ms. Raininger stated, "Less than 200 yards. More
than a football field . Maybe like one and a half football fields."
Ms. Raininger confirmed the boat came between her and the shore.
When asked how far the boat was from her when it passed her, Ms. Raininger stated,
" Passed me at about 30 feet."
When asked how many people were in her dive group, Ms. Raininger stated, "Me and
three other people. Two guys and a girl."
Ms. Raininger confirmed she had her paddleboard and a dive flag.
When asked about her dive flag, Ms. Raininger stated, "Justin had it attached to his arm
with a ten-foot string. It must have been longer than ten feet cause he was going down
further than that. But it had the big yellow buoy and then the long rod, then the flag."
When asked how far they were from their flag, Ms. Raininger stated, "Fifteen feet. It
was probably drifting away from us a little bit. It's not on one of those retractable
ones."

o

When asked to describe the boat, Ms. Raininger stated, "It was mostly white with the

o

trim was a little bit sea green. It had the center T-console where you stand up and
operate from there. It had three engines on the back. Unmarked, like brand new. The
boat was not marked also. Didn't have any tag number or anything on it. Three engines
were white with the seafoam green trim. Had a flat back stern."
When asked if there were any other divers or boats in the vicinity, Ms. Raininger stated,
"There was another boat. They were either on the second or third reef though . And
they were a little bit further away. I believe they had their dive flag up at some point
and had people in the water. But we didn't get very close to them."
Ms. Raininger stated, "There were like three groups with very close vicinity. There was

o

my group with my paddle board further north, then the group of two with the kayak and
dive flag on top of that, and then Carter and Andy were the most south."
o

When asked if Carter and Andy had a dive flag, Ms. Raininger stated, "Yes."

16

 o
o

When asked if she saw it before the accident, Ms. Raininger stated, " I did."
When asked if she knew how far away, they were from their dive flag, Ms. Raininger
stated, "I think it was right beside him. Like within 5 - 10 feet."

o

When asked if the dive flags she saw were the standard pull behind, Ms. Raininger
stated, "Well, no. Attached to Justin was the pull behind with the float and the stick and
the regulation size flag. Just south of us was the one that was attached to the top of the

o

o
o
o

o

•

kayak. And it was high up. Must have been regulation size in my estimate as well. But
it was out of the water higher than a pull behind one. Andy and Carter's, I saw it in
pieces afterwards."
Ms. Raininger stated, " It was hit, so it broke. I guess the top half fell to the bottom.
They recovered it with his arm later on . It sat at the table where we took our witness
statements with the police. I think they took it or Ofc. Stone took it. His had a yellow
fatter floaty. It was between two of the engines as we were coming in. So, it was tied
up in the props. It was between the engines as we were coming into shore. It was the
pull behind kind, with the white string. And the string got caught between the engines."
Ms. Raininger viewed Samantha Cerny's video and identified herself as the
paddleboarder leaving the beach in the video.
Ms. Raininger identified the dive gear that was left on the incident vessel.
Ms. Raininger stated, "the guy in the white shirt was trying to help tie one of the knee
tourniquets. He was really shaky. Like couldn't even hold it kind of shaky. And I took
over. Like I asked him, "Can I do this?" and he didn't respond. I'm sure he was in
shock."
When asked to identify the operator of the boat, Ms. Raininger stated, "The guy in the
white shirt. He had a white visor on."

o Statement was concluded at 1333 hrs.
o Ms. Raininger marked locations on a map of the area during her statement.
At approximately 1354 hrs. I sent Mr. Duncan an email with the list of non-essential items to be
returned to Mr. Stanton II. (for complete list of items, see attached)

12/11/19
•

At approximately 1025 hrs., Inv. Coffin, Inv. Phillips, and I entered the FWC Jupiter Evidence
compound to perform the following:
o Re-download the Mercury Vessel View 7 in an alternative format.
o Re-inspect hull of vessel for damage caused by impact with Mr. Viss.
•

o
•

No damage that could definitively be determined to have been caused by Mr.
Viss was located.
Remove snorkel gear belonging to Mr. Earl and Ms. Raininger.

At approximately 1057 hrs., I inspected and photographed Carter Viss' dive gear stored at the
FWC Jupiter Evidence Facility:
o The dive gear in evidence consisted of the following:
• Black mask and snorkel with blue cloth head strap and orange marker tape
around top of snorkel.
•
•

Black weight belt with two yellow weights attached .
Two-piece divers-down flag sized for display on water with a yellow buoy.

17

 •

o

The flag was the proper divers-down symbol (rectangular or square red symbol with a
white diagonal stripe) and had the required wire stiffener attached.

o
o

The flag was bright in color with no noticeable fading.
The white tow string was cleanly cut close to where it attached to the tow buoy.

119.071(3)(a) and 281.301, F.S

•

Inv. Phillips and I went to the residence of Samantha Marulli to request a recorded statement.
o Ms. Marulli had given a television interview regarding the incident.
o Ms. Marulli was not feeling well, so we obtained her contact number.

•

At approximately 1239 hrs., I received a forwarded email from Lt. Warne which he had received
from AIG Insurance Company.
o The email stated AIG was the insurer for Mr. Stanton's 2008 36-foot Yellow Fin and with
the seriousness of the injuries they wanted to confirm the vessel was theirs.
o The email stated the PBPD report listed the wrong year and VIN number.

o
•

The email provided the HIN number in their files.

At approximately 1419 hrs., I received a call from Mr. Duncan regarding the return of the nonessential items from Mr. Stanton ll' s vessel.
•
•

Mr. Duncan stated Mr. Viss' civil attorneys were interested in holding some of
the items being returned.
I explained to Mr. Duncan the securing of any items for Mr. Viss' civil attorneys
would have to be arranged between them and FWC would not be holding any
items for the civil case without a court order.

12/12/19
•

At approximately 1037 hrs., I received an email from Mr. Duncan stating they were working with
Mr. Viss' legal team regarding the disposition of some of the items to be returned and Mr.
Duncan would contact me once an agreement was arranged.

•

At approximately 1048 hrs., I called Yellowfin Yachts to obtain the location of their hidden hull
identification number (HIN).

o
•

I obtained a vague location for where it should be found.

At approximately 1052 hrs., I left a voicemail for Samuel Youmans with AIG insurance regarding
Mr. Stanton ll's vessel.

o

o
o
o

I explained the USCG Documentation matched the description of Mr. Stanton ll's vessel,
but the HIN number had been obscured by the installation of a ladder.
I explained the HIN on the Florida registration document was missing a digit.
I offered to start removing vessel trim to locate the hidden HIN number.
At approximately 1057 hrs., I received a voicemail from Mr. Youmans stating the
explanation of the paperwork was enough to confirm the identity of the vessel for their
purposes.

•

At approximately 1106 hrs., I returned Ms. Raininger's dive gear to her co-worker based on Ms.
Raininger' s email giving authorization.

•

At approximately 1217 hrs., I spoke to Chuck Viss regarding scheduling Carter Viss' statement.

18

 o

Based on Carter Viss' upcoming procedures/physical therapy and my being out of the
office the week of December 161h, it was decided to wait until the week of December
23rd to schedule the statement.

12/13/19
•

At approximately 1012 hrs., I received a call from the FWC Regional Office stating Ms. Raininger
had left the video from her GoPro camera and it would be placed in my mailbox.

•

At approximately 1425 hrs., I spoke to Palm Beach County Assistant State Attorney (ASA) Kadis
and updated him on the status of the investigation.
o
o

•

I requested his input on the return of Mr. Stanton ll's vessel, since there was no physical
damage to the vessel and the GPS data had already been obtained .
ASA Kadis stated he had no reason to hold the vessel if we had already obtained
whatever information we needed from it.

At approximately 1518 hrs., I called Mr. Duncan and informed him we were ready to return Mr.
Stanton ll's vessel.
o

•

Mr. Duncan stated he would need to contact Mr. Viss' attorneys regarding the return of
the vessel.
o Mr. Duncan agreed to contact me after he had spoken to Mr. Viss' attorneys to make
further arrangements.
o At approximately 1525 hrs., I emailed Mr. Duncan our intent to return the vessel.
At approximately 1522 hrs., I received a call from Christine Raininger stating her Go Pro had been
on fisheye mode, so everything looked farther away.
o

•

The video shows water conditions above/below the surface prior to the incident and
their dive flag. (for video, see attached)

At approximately 1611 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Samantha Marulli at the
FWC Jupiter Office, utilizing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline (FWCDLE 012(01/08)). Inv.
Phillips was present for the statement. The following information was obtained: {For complete
statement, see attached) (audio recorder and body camera were used to document the
statement)
o Ms. Marulli stated, "I went up there early in the morning with my boyfriend. It couldn't

o

o

o

have been a more beautiful day. I remember the ocean being so calm. No waves. No
wake . Nothing."
Ms. Marulli stated, "And that's what made me see the snorkelers. I don't know if they
were snorkeling or diving. I saw their flags. They were literally not even a hundred
yards away from me."
Ms. Marulli stated, "I was laying down and my boyfriend was up, and I heard a boat
come running in. I just heard the sound of the engines coming in. And it sounded very
close. And he nagged me, and he goes, "Babe, get up. Look at how close this boat is to
shore." And that's when I got up. I saw the boat go over the snorkeling team."
Ms. Marulli stated, "We were waiting there for a little bit. There was like some activity
in the water. Where a man in the water started yelling " Help help." And the woman
behind me and her daughter called 911."

o

Ms. Marulli stated, "When I saw them lift him out of the water, put him onto the boat, I
grabbed my boyfriend and said, "Is that an arm missing?" And then I saw his knee that
19

 was severed or opened. I don't know what you call it. They got him onto the boat. I
don't know what they were doing to him on the boat. But I know the chief of Palm
Beach Police signaled a few times and was getting irritated and said, " Bring the boat
here now." And they finally came onto shore."
o

o

Ms. Marulli stated, "When the boat came onto shore, I noticed that there was the
gentleman who was part of the boat party. Him and his two kids, couldn't have been
more than 6 and the girl was younger looking to me. They like ran out as fast as they
could to get out of the scene or whatever. I think also they didn't want the children
seeing."
Ms. Marulli stated, "The father, who I know now is the father, wouldn't get off the boat.
He kinda stayed on the boat. On the bow of the boat. He was wearing a black shirt and
jeans."

o

Ms. Marulli stated, "The boy who was driving the boat, now I know his name is Daniel,

o

he was sitting over when you first walk onto the beach there's like a little wooded area.
He was down on the ground crying. And he was wearing a visor. And I remember he
took it off. He was just in shock and crying. This is a grown man crying."
Ms. Marulli stated, "Just going back and looking at that day. And I'm not blaming

o
o

o

anyone here. That's not what I want to do or anything, but I did see dive flags. And the
ocean couldn't have been calmer. There were people paddle boarding on Thanksgiving
Day. That's how calm the waters were."
Ms. Marulli stated, "The snorkelers seemed as if they swam out there from shore
because there was no boat around that they were on."
When asked what beach they were at, Ms. Marulli stated, " It was at the end of Root
Trai l and Ocean."
When asked how far out the boat was, Ms. Marulli stated, "Enough for me to
comfortably swim out and not be afraid of a shark getting to me. That's how close it
was."

o

o

o
o

When asked to describe the boat, Ms. Marulli stated, "To me it seemed like a 35-footer.
I think it's like a 45-foot fishing boat. It had three engines on it. Outboard engines on it.
It was white and it had turquoise green bottom . Where the driving was it had a little
head thing."
When asked how fast the boat was going, Ms. Marulli stated, " For that area. For being
that close. I mean it seemed as if you were like way out cruising. He was at full cruising
speed. And that's what made me get up. And this is what made me watch the whole
thing."
Statement was concluded at 1630 hrs.
Ms. Marulli marked locations on a map of the area during her statement.

•

At approximately 1715 hrs., I returned the pair of swim fins to Mr. Andrew Earl at the FWC
Ju piter Office.

•

At approximately 1721 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Andrew Earl at the FWC
Jupiter Office, utilizing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline (FWCDLE 012(01/08)). Inv. Phillips
was present for the statement. The following information was obtained: (For complete
statement, see attached) (audio recorder and body camera were used to document the
statement)
20

 o

o

Mr. Earl brought in four pages of notes and a map that he wrote on the night of
Thanksgiving Day - the night of the incident. Mr. Earl noted he finished at 9:24pm.
Mr. Earl read through his written statement as part of his recorded statement.
• I picked Carter up a little after 9am Thanksgiving morning to go snorkeling.
• We got to Palm Beach probably around 9:30 to snorkel the reef system off The
Breakers Hotel.
• We left our stuff (buckets, backpack, etc.) on the beach about X mile north of
The Breakers Hotel.
•
•
•

We then walked to The Breakers and kicked off in front of the hotel.
We were out for quite a while because the water was crystal clear.
I can remember saying that we should probably head in because we had been in
for a couple hours.

•

We both agreed and Carter pointed out where our stuff was on the beach,
which was north west of our current location. So, we started swimming that
way.

•
•
•

Carter was towing his dive flag behind him roughly 10 - 15 feet.
And then I started to hear a noise as we were heading in.
As I looked up, I saw a very large boat heading south about 25 feet away from
me to the west.
As I looked over, I saw Carter screaming and in serious pain.
I swam as fast as I could to him as he was struggling to stay above water and
bleeding badly.
I got to him and held him to keep him above water, so he could breathe and
noticed his right arm was missing.

•
•
•

o

o

•
•
•

As I was holding him, I started screaming for help and to call 911.
Christine was nearby and swam over to us.
I had noticed the boat that hit him had slowed down to a stop, and I was
screaming for their help.

•
•

They started to slowly make their way back to us.
Carter was bleeding very badly and at one-point, Christine used her hands to
stop the bleeding.

Mr. Earl stated, "I don't recall if the boat turned around. Cause I remember a lot of my
focus was on Carter and his arm and keeping him up. So, all I remember, I don't know if
the boat came reverse the whole way from where it was. If it turned and then, but all I
remember is it coming back in reverse."
•

I only noticed two people on the boat. The older man on the back and the other
man in the white visor and white collared shirt driving the boat.

•

Once at the boat, we noticed his motors were still on.

Mr. Earl stated, "I would say they were probably switched on into neutral. So, I was just
holding Carter and kicking as fast as I could to get to the boat. And it seemed like it took
forever. Cause I'm just kicking. It was just hard. Cause I just remember seeing him
reaching and it seemed like an eternity to get to him. But we did."

21

 o

o

Mr. Earl stated, "So, with the help of them two in the back. I believe both of them
helped and Christine cause she got on the boat, too. And I stayed in the water. We
were able to get Carter on to the back of the boat and lay him down on the back deck."
• During this, I noticed both of his legs had deep gashes.
Mr. Earl stated, "I could see his kneecap on one leg, which was his right leg, and it was
shattered . It was just .. .you could see it dangling. It was bad. And on his other leg, his
left leg, there was a deep gash below the knee towards the calf. Where you could see
bone too there. It was dangling pretty bad too. And the process of moving him from
the water to the back of the boat, his legs got in some positions that were very painful
for him and he screamed very, very loud. And it was tough ."
•

o

At some point, the driver got a first aid kit and was trying to put a tourniquet on
Carter's legs.

Mr. Earl stated, "So he was trying to put a tourniquet on Carter's legs. The driver,
gentleman in the white visor and white collared shirt. The driver was physically shaking
and breathing very heavy. So, he was . . .The whole thing he was shaking real bad. He
was very shaken up as were all of us."
•
•
•

I got in the boat and tried to calm Carter down, but he was in obvious pain and
screaming.
The driver then went to the wheel and drove to shore.
The driver drove right onto the beach and paramedics came with what looked
like a surfboard that we loaded Carter onto.

Carter's flag had gotten hit by the boat because it was broken and recovered by
a diver.
Mr. Earl stated, "I don't know if it's the same guy that got his arm, but his flag was broke
after it got hit. The buoy portion of it stayed, but the flag got knocked off."
•

o
o

o
o
o
o

Mr. Earl stated, "I believe there were 3 dive flags in the vicinity. There was Carter's,
Christine had one, and believe another diver north of us had one. As well as a paddle
board . And I also remember seeing a kayak out there as well - to the north of us. The
paddle board would have been Christine's. She had a lot of gear and stuff on it."
• I remember seeing Carter's buoy on shore next to the man's boat.
• I believe that Carter's dive flag rope was still stuck in the boater's props.
When asked what the current was that day, Mr. Earl stated, "It wasn't as heavy north as
what you would think. It was almost kinda ...It was pretty calm."
Mr. Earl stated, "Carter would have been at the time of the incident, 25 feet west of
where I was."
Mr. Earl stated, "This mark here would have been roughly where Christine was. And she
would have been 50 - 100 yards north of us."
When asked how far east/west was Christine, Mr. Earl stated, "I feel like when she got
to us, she kinda came in from northeast of us. So, she would have been coming
southwest, slightly. She might have even been parallel with me. She was close enough
to where she heard me scream and all that."

o

Mr. Earl stated, "Carter is over here. My head is down. By the time I hear a quick loud
noise. And by the time I come up and look over, the boat is .. .It was probably literally

22

 all in line with my side over. By the time ... And it was going quick. I mean it was fast.
By the time I came up and ... "
o

o

Mr. Earl stated, " If you throttle down a boat, you can stop fairly quick. You know what I
mean, you throttle down in a boat, it's a pretty quick stop. They were roughly 100, 200
yards, maybe even more. That' s just a rough guess. South of where we were."
When asked about the wind, Mr. Earl stated, "Yeah, the water was flat. There might
have been a little wind . I honestly don't really recall. I just remember seeing the ocean
when we first got to the island."

o

When asked if it was sunny, Mr. Earl stated, "Yeah, it was definitely sunny. When this
happened, it was high noon. The sun's . . .You know, you don't have it on a horizon
either way. It's straight up. You know, 12:30. It was good. It was sunny. Maybe minor
cloud cover."

o

o

o

When asked how cold the water was, Mr. Earl stated, "It wasn't bad. It was a little brisk
when you get in. I couldn't tell you a temperature. You get used to it in a minute or
two. We were out in it for two plus hours."
When asked how crowded it was, Mr. Earl stated, "We actually commented on that on
the way there. Like, "You think it's gonna be busy?" When we first got there, which it
was still early, it wasn't too crowded. There were a few people here and there . We
walked by some people on the way down to The Breakers. It wasn't crazy when we first
got there. Definitely more people in the afternoon when we got to the beach."
When asked how many times they've dove The Breakers reef system, Mr. Earl stated,
"That's Carter's favorite reef system there. He' s dove that many times by himself. Me
and him, we've probably done that one, I'd say four or five times there. But we'd also
hit different areas. We'd also hit off of the clock tower on Palm Beach. You can dive off
of that. Another spot that we'd hit quite a bit, which we would go after work, would be
on Singer Island. Not Phil Foster, but off the ocean rock piles in front of the hotels

o

there . That would be one we could do after cause it's kinda a little far if we're getting
off work at Loggerhead Juno Beach. So, Singer Island's a little closer. We've dove Phil
Foster before. We've hit some spots."
When asked for Carter's experience level for dive/snorkeling, Mr. Earl stated, "His
swimming ability is far better than mine. He didn't have fins on . He was pretty athletic.
He would run. He would swim. He would probably be able to swim faster with no fins
than me with fins. I wore fins, but he sometimes didn't. And, he'd still be able to dive
down pretty far. He's like 6'3" or something, you know, long legs - long arms. He was a
good swimmer. Very good."

o

When asked what he was wearing that day, Mr. Earl stated, "All I had on in the water,
for me. I had swim trunks. Floral, some pink, white. They had like different scenes, like
Huntington Beach Pier. They would have been base color of tannish - off white. And
then mask and fins."

o

When asked what Carter was wearing, Mr. Earl stated, "Carter had gloves on - black.
His shorts, I'd say blue. Maybe blue and white. I honestly don't recall. Belt, which I
believe his flag rope was tied on his belt. Usually he would tie it on his belt. He had a
collection net. And by his buoy on a thing, he would have a bait/minnow thing (yellow
hard-sided bucket with flip lid). We would collect and throw them right into that"

23

 o

o
o
o

When asked if he could tell who was driving the boat as it went past, Mr. Earl stated, "It
was so fast. My head's down. By the time I came up and looked, you know, cause of
the noise. It was going so fast, there's no way. I couldn't see anything. It was probably
going 30+ mph."
When asked how close it was, Mr. Earl stated, "From the boat to me? By the time I came
up, I'd say 25 feet."
When asked when he first saw the boat, Mr. Earl stated, "Literally when I came up, it
was probably over Carter."
Mr. Earl stated, "There was no throttle down, from where I was at. Throttle down, from
what I saw, was after the fact. I don't know if he felt it or what. Or saw it at the last
second. I don't know, but I definitely didn't witness a throttle down. It was a boat going
full speed over my friend ."

o

o
o
o
o

Mr. Earl stated, "From where I was at and what I witnessed, the incident was due to
boater negligence and just general irresponsibility. It was a situation that if the boater
had been paying much more attention to his direct surroundings, would have been
easily avoided. Especially with the amount of people in that general area. Just the fact
that Carter's flag and buoy were wrapped up in his prop. It's a situation that shouldn't
have happened and Carter's paying for it."
Statement was concluded at 1806 hrs.
Audio recorder fell and stopped recording during statement. Recorder was restarted
immediately (body camera recorded entire uninterrupted statement).
Mr. Earl marked locations on a map of the area during his statement.
Inv. Phillips photocopied Mr. Earl's written notes he completed at 2124 hrs. on
11/28/19. (see attached)

12/16/19
•

At approximately 1437 hrs., I received a call from Mr. Duncan regarding the return of Mr.
Stanton ll's vessel.
o Mr. Duncan stated they had come to an agreement with Mr. Viss' attorneys regarding
the return of the vessel.
o Mr. Viss' attorneys wanted to inspect the vessel prior to its return to Mr. Stanton II.
o I explained I was out of the office for the week, but I would have my Lieutenant contact
him regarding the inspection/return.

•

At approximately 1636 hrs., I spoke to Lt. Carcasses and informed him of Mr. Duncan's request
to inspect the vessel.

•

At approximately 1901 hrs., Lt. Carcasses included me on an email to Mr. Duncan stating he had
received the request for an inspection and would allow a visual inspection prior to its release.

12/17/19
•

At approximately 0827 hrs., I was included in an email from Mr. Duncan to Lt. Carcasses stating
Mr. Stanton ll's lawyers and Mr. Viss' lawyers had agreed to meet the afternoon of 12/19/19 to
inspect the vessel

•

At approximately 1801 hrs., I was included in an email from Lt. Carcasses to Mr. Duncan
confirming the return of the vessel and inspection on 12/19/19 at 1300 hrs.
24

 •

At approximately 1804 hrs., I received a call from Lt. Carcasses stating he had arranged with Mr.
Duncan regarding the return/inspection of the vessel.
o The vessel would be removed from the FWC Jupiter Evidence Compound and signed
over to Mr. Stanton II (or his representative) on 12/19/19 at 1300 hrs.
o The vessel would be inspected on site by the attorneys and their agents.
o The vessel would be towed by a third party to a local ramp where Mr. Stanton II would
take the vessel.
o

FWC's trailer would be returned to the Jupiter office.

12/19/19
•

At approximately 1014 hrs., Lt. Carcasses contacted me and requested a list of the contents of
the vessel.

•

At approximately 1039hrs., I emailed Lt. Carcasses the vessel inventory I compiled on 12/03/19.

•

At approximately 1047 hrs., I received a call from Lt. Carcasses confirming the items to be
returned with the vessel were the inventoried items from 12/03/19 and vessel specific items
listed on the property receipts.

12/24/19
•

At approximately 1243 hrs., I received a call from Chuck Viss regarding scheduling the statement
for Carter Viss.
o
o

Mr. Viss stated Carter Viss was doing well and was ready to provide his statement.
We scheduled the statement for 12/26/19 at 1600 hrs.

12/26/19
•

At approximately 1608 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Carter Viss at St. Mary's
Medical Center Rm 2218, utilizing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline {FWCDLE 012(01/08)).
Inv. Luher, Greg Barnhart, Chuck Viss, and Leila Viss were present for the statement. The
following information was obtained: (For complete statement, see attached) (audio recorder
and body camera were used to document the statement)
o Mr. Viss stated, "Me and my friend, Andy, went out to The Breakers reef that morning.
It was very flat. Water was extremely clear. Swam out right at The Breakers Hotel. We
were trying to catch fish. Little fish. Bring them back for a tank."
o

Mr. Viss stated, "We swam out from The Breakers Hotel. Then we swam north along
the reef that's parallel to the beach. And we were out there for about 2 - 2 Yi hours. By
the time we swam north enough that we could see our stuff on the beach. Where we
originally laid it. That's when we started swimming back."

o

Mr. Viss stated, "When we started swimming back, there was a lot of buzzing from
boats in the water. And I was swimming, kinda looking down, and I heard a very loud
buzzing near me. I looked to the north and I saw a big boat headed straight towards
me. It was very close at the time. I had maybe three or four seconds to think about
what's going on. At that moment I thought to myself, I can't let this boat hit my torso or
my head. So, I swam to the side and got as far away as I could from it and had my limbs
facing the boat. That's when the boat struck me."

25

 o

Mr. Viss stated, "After that, I saw the extent of my injuries and started screaming for

o

Andy. And just screaming for help in general. I was trying to keep myself afloat. My
head was kinda bobbing up and down in the water. Andy was swimming as fast as he
could towards me. He eventually got to me and held me."
Mr. Viss stated, "This is when I started screaming, "It's over." I saw my injuries and I
thought it's over. I was screaming. We were screaming at the boat, too."

o

Mr. Viss stated, "The boat that passed me was maybe 200 yards past us. And the boat
heard me probably initially screaming. They eventually turned around."

o

Mr. Viss stated, "Andy was swimming towards the boat with me. I think it was about

o

o
o

o

o
o

this time, Christine, another diver in the water, kinda saw the situation and came to
help. Eventually we got to the boat."
Mr. Viss stated, "At this point, one of the people on the boat got a first aid kit. Also,
Christine got a tourniquet. Tied it around my arm. That stopped the bleeding. Or really
slowed down the bleeding. They all tried to get me on the boat - that lower part by the
engines."
Mr. Viss stated, "They got me on the boat. I was screaming in pain. That was my main
focus, just the pain."
Mr. Viss stated, "I saw two guys on the boat. One was sitting in the middle of the boat.
One was helping me with the first aid kit. And eventually they started driving slowly
towards the beach. I was still on the back of the boat with Andy and Christine. They
were both comforting me."
Mr. Viss stated, " Eventually, I started screaming again. We eventually got to the beach
and that's where the paramedics were waiting right at the water. They lifted me
directly from the back of the boat there onto a gurney or stretcher they had. Then they
lifted me from the stretcher off the beach and into the ambulance. Then in the
ambulance they asked for a contact number. I gave what I believe was my dad's cell
phone number. And then we eventually got to the hospital. And I don't remember
anything past that."
When asked what time they got to the beach, Mr. Viss stated, " I'd say about 9:30."
When asked what reef they were snorkeling on or how far out they were, Mr. Viss
stat ed, "So, we started out on The Breakers reef, which was right off the hotel. That's
perpendicular to the beach. And then there's a moment where that ends, and a parallel
portion starts. I'd say that portion is about 250 -300 yards off the beach. That stays
about like that until the point where we got to where we put our stuff down up north.

o

o
o

started swimming in. I probably swam in SO yards until I encountered the boat."
When asked how often he went to that reef, Mr. Viss stated, "All the time. Like I go
there any day it's flat and I have the day off. I've been there probably at least SO times.
Swam that same cycle. Where I go swim The Breakers, swim north, and then go back to
my stuff. I've done that like SO times."
When asked where his stuff was at, Mr. Viss stated, "Atlantic Avenue."
When asked what conditions were like that day, Mr. Viss stated, " It was completely flat
like a lake. Water visibility was 100+ feet almost. It was the best I've seen in a long
time. Really good."

26

 o

When asked if there was any wind or wind chop, Mr. Viss stated, "Almost no wind chop.
There was a slight southern current, which is weird. Usually there's a northern current.
But I mean very, very slight southern current."

o

When asked what he was wearing that day, Mr. Viss stated, "I was wearing my swimsuit,
no fins, my dive gloves, my mask. And then I had a belt on me, which on the back of my
belt was kind of a wraparound of rope that went to my dive buoy. And I also had a
collecting net. And on my dive buoy was a little trolling bucket to put small fish in and
my dive flag."

o

When asked what color his swimsuit was, Mr. Viss stated, "It was a turquoise, black, and
white ."

o
o

When asked what color the gloves were, Mr. Viss stated, "Black and grey."
When asked to describe his dive flag, Mr. Viss stated, "It's a yellow kinda cone-shaped
buoy with a downward pole and then the lead weight at the bottom of it. Then above
that the dive flag goes up. I don't know the exact length, but it goes up maybe a foot
and a half. And the dive flag itself is a standard size I bought from a dive shop."

o
o

When asked how far the dive flag was from him, Mr. Viss stated, "25 - 30 feet. That's

o

When asked where he was when he first saw the boat, Mr. Viss stated, " I was kinda

Mr. Viss confirmed the flag still had the stiffener attached.
what it usually is."
coming up from a dive when I saw it. So, I was at the surface when I made the decision
to swim with my limbs trying to get away from it, so that it wouldn't hit."

o

When asked where his dive flag would have been at that point, Mr. Viss stated, "It
would have been 25 foot, maybe a little south of me cause of the current. Just slightly
south."

o

When asked which way he swam to get away from the boat, Mr. Viss stated, "Towards
the beach."

o
o
o

o

Mr. Viss confirmed the dive flag was attached to the back of his weight belt.
When asked how far the boat was when he first saw it, Mr. Viss stated, "Um, 50 feet."
When asked where the boat was located to him, Mr. Viss stated, "Headed south, so it
was north of me."
When asked how fast the boat was going, Mr. Viss stated, "Fast, it was loud. Very loud.
That's what got my attention from it. I probably had three-ish seconds to really think
about it before it hit me. I cou ldn't tell you how fast."

o

When asked to describe the boat, Mr. Viss stated, "It was large. White bottom, I
bel ieve. It was turquoise and white when I saw it kinda turning towards us. Coming
back."

o

When asked if he knew Christine before the incident, Mr. Viss stated, "I did not know
her before this."

o
o

When asked who was in his dive group, Mr. Viss stated, "Just Andy."
When asked to explain the colors of the flag, Mr. Viss stated, "It's red with a white stripe
diagonally through it. Standard dive flag. And the size - the standard size that
snorkelers use out there. Bought it from dive shop. Had diagonal metal brace to keep it
up."

o

When asked how long the line was to his belt, Mr. Viss stated, "uh, 30 feet."

27

 o

Mr. Viss stated Andy was about 50 feet due east of him.

o

When asked if he saw any other snorkelers that day, Mr. Viss stated, "Yeah, a lot. I saw
swimmers with no dive flags. You know, swimming recreationally. I saw a few other
snorkelers out there: Looking back, when I was out here, I saw a lot of dive flags over
here cause this is more populated stuff."

o

When asked if he usually saw snorkelers in this area, Mr. Viss stated, "Yeah. So, every
time I've gone out there, you know, especially on a good day like this I've seen people
out there. Especially on a holiday or weekend day. It's very populated."

o

When asked about his history of snorkeling/diving, Mr. Viss stated, "So, I've been doing
it for about six years. I came down here for school six years ago. And immediately I got
into snorkeling. Been to Phil Foster Park a lot. Singer Island, off there a lot. Clock
Tower reef, little bit south there. Those are my main spots around here that I go to a lot
for snorkeling. Been doing it for years."

o

When asked how far he thought the boat was from his dive flag, Mr. Viss stated,
"Basically it hit between me and my dive flag. The dive flag was to the southeast of me
cause of the current. Slightly, about 30 feet. And the boat hit me, from the boat's
perspective, from its right side. So, it hit me from the side that was facing the beach.
And then from the boat's perspective the dive flag was on the left side - east of the
boat. So, it basically went between me and my dive flag."

o

When asked again how close the boat was to his dive flag, Mr. Viss stated, "I'd say 20
feet."

o

When asked to describe his injuries, Mr. Viss stated, "So, I have immediate amputation
of my right arm, slit/large cut down my {left) wrist onto my forearm on the inside, large
cut about halfway through my right leg kinda around the knee, and then a cut halfway
down my {left) lower leg through my calf. Those are the injuries I remember seeing
initially. Broken wrist, broken femur. I have a plate in here, a rod w ith screws on this
leg kinda holding it together. And basically, had to reconstruct my knee. I have plates
and screws holding this together."

o

When asked if he prominently displays his dive flag when he goes diving, Mr. Viss stated,
"Yep."

o

When asked if he remembered seeing his dive flag after the incident, Mr. Viss stated, " I
remember seeing my trolling bucket totally cut off and floating and broken on top. I
can't recall seeing my dive flag afte rwards. I recall seeing the line stuck in their
propellers."

o
o

When asked how many engines were on the boat, Mr. Viss stated, "Uh, Three."
When asked to explain "line stuck in their propellers", Mr. Viss stated, "So, when I was
getting lifted onto the boat - when we were approaching the boat, I saw my white line

•

o

that came off my dive belt kinda mixed up in their propellers."
When asked if he saw the buoy, Mr. Viss stated, "I did not."

o

Statement was concluded at 1633 hrs.

o

Mr. Viss marked locations on a map of the area during his statement.

After turning off the recording, Carter Viss explained he was trying to keep his back and head
away from the vessel when he was hit.

28

 o

•

Carter Viss stated at the time he was hit his body was parallel to the vessel with his head
to the south .
o Carter Viss stated he rolled to his side, so his head/back were toward the beach (away
from the boat) and pushed out (forward) with his arms and legs.
o Carter Viss believed he was hit by the outside motor.
At approximately 1848 hrs., I received an email from Chuck Viss requesting a copy of my
completed report.

12/27/19
•

At approximately 1153 hrs., I received the completed Forensic Analysis of Garmin and Mercury
Marine Navigation System Devices report from Lt. Alber. The following information was
obtained : (For complete report, see attached)
o The vessel was equipped with a sophisticated navigation system that included
multiple GPS devices, RADAR, SONAR, infrared, autopilot, video, and weather.
• Mounted in the center console, in front of the helm, were two Garmin
GPSMAP 7616 XVS monitors (Image 1).
•

These are multi-function devices which are capable of being used as
advanced GPS chart plotters, as displays for data from the other navigation

•
•
•
o

system components, or as video monitors.
The Garmin monitors were networked together via a GMS 10 network port
expander, which was mounted inside the center console.
They received GPS signals, weather, and Sirius XM satellite radio from a pair
of Garmin antennas mounted on top of the T-top.
The components all appeared to be in good condition and displayed normal
wear and tear.

The Yellowfin was also equipped with a Mercury Vesselview 7 engine information
display.
• This device is capable of displaying a variety of engine performance data, as
well as navigational information and GPS data.
•

It was mounted to the center console, immediately in front of the steering
wheel, and next to a Garmin autopilot control unit (Image 2).

•

o

The Mercury Vesselview device had a separate Navico/Simrad GPS antenna
mounted on top of the T-top.

• The display appeared to be in good condition with normal wear and tear.
After the initial inspection of each of the vessel's navigation system components,
the battery switches were turned on and the devices were powered up.
•

At the end of the boot process, both Garmin monitors were placed in
simulator mode so that they would not generate any new data.

•

Next, the various settings and software versions were documented, and all
the navigational data stored in each device was transferred onto a new
(unused) memory card.

•

The same process was then completed on the Vesselview monitor.

29

 •

Once the transfers were complete, each device was powered down and the
memory card was removed.

•

The evidence copy of the data from each device was turned over to
Investigator Fowler and a working copy retained for examination.

•
o

The data was later analyzed using Garmin Homeport and Google Earth
software.

On the day of the incident (11/28/19), the starboard GPS logged a detailed track line
that documented all the vessel's movements.
•
•

The tracks started at 11:25 AM, behind the residence at 1100 North Lake
Way and showed that the vessel started making way at 11:47 AM.
After leaving the dock, the operator maintained a northerly course, parallel
to the Palm Beach shoreline, at speeds of 8-10 MPH.
•

This area of Lake Worth is a seasonal manatee protection zone from
November 15 thru March 31, and vessels are required to proceed at
idle speed.

•
•
•
•
•

The speeds logged by the GPS were consistent with these
regulations.

Once the vessel reached the Lake Worth Inlet and cleared the manatee zone,
the operator accelerated to speeds that averaged 40 MPH.
The data showed that the vessel looped around the inlet's south jetty and
headed towards the beach.
The vessel continued to accelerate as it headed towards the southwest and
then began a course parallel to the shore (Image 6).
The vessel's average speed as it began to parallel the beach was 53 MPH
and, at its closest point, the boat got within 475 feet of the shoreline.

o

When the vessel approached the area of the incident, the average speed logged by
the GPS was 51 MPH and the boat was approximately 790 feet from shore.
• At 12:04:36, the device showed a speed of 28 MPH and the course changed
approximately 10 degrees to starboard (west).
•

Four seconds later, the speed was 16 MPH and the course changed another
10 degrees to starboard (Image 7).

•

At 12:04:44, the device logged a speed of 7 MPH and then, 5 seconds later, a
speed of 4.3 MPH.

•

After dropping to idle speed, the vessel turned to the east and began a
complete loop back to its original track.
As the vessel completed the loop and began a southerly course, the device
logged speeds of 1 MPH.

•
o

Where the two track lines come together, and the vessel was at a near stop, is likely
where the incident occurred.
•

The location was approximately 700 feet east of the Palm Beach shoreline
(Image 8).

30

 o

From there, the device generated track points which showed that the vessel
traveled approximately 500 feet south before it turned west and pulled up to the
beach.
•

o

The vessel came to a stop on the beach at 12:13:28 PM.

A forensic examination of the navigation system on the 36-foot Yellowfin involved in
the boating incident on 11/28/19 revealed three sources of GPS data.
• Each of the vessel's two Garmin GPSMAP 7616 XSV chart plotters provided
data, and the Mercury Vesselview 7 engine information display provided
data.
• Although the components were part of a networked system, they did
not all share the same information.
•
•

The track points generated by each device, while documenting the
same travels, were unique to each GPS.

The track line data showed that on 11/28/19, at 11:47 AM, the Yellowfin
departed the dock behind the residence at 1100 North Lake Way in Palm
Beach.
•

•
•

•

The vessel headed north in the Lake Worth Lagoon at slow/idle
speeds, which were in compliance with the area's manatee
protection zone .
Speeds picked up in the Lake Worth Inlet as the vessel headed east,
and then south along the beach.
All three GPS's documented speeds that averaged 53 MPH as the
vessel ran parallel to the shoreline.

• At its closest point, the vessel came within 475 feet of the beach.
As the Yellowfin continued south, it approached the reef area north of the
Breakers Hotel where the incident happened.
•

The starboard Garmin and the Vesselview device both generated
track point data that were relevant to the incident.

•

Both devices showed the vessel was traveling at over 50 MPH in the
moments before striking the diver.

•

The Vesselview device logged a speed of 52 MPH and the Garmin
GPS logged a speed of 51 MPH 15 seconds before the incident.

•

As the vessel crossed the reef, the speeds decreased steadily, and
the course shifted to the west.

•

There were no sudden speed or course changes consistent with an
evasive maneuver (Image 10).

•

After the incident, the operator of the Yellowfin immediately turned
around, returned to the scene, and rendered aid.

•

After the diver was brought aboard, the vessel idled south
approximately 500 feet before turning and heading to the beach.

•

Palm Beach Fire Rescue responded to the scene and transported the
victim to the hospital.

31

 •

The Yellowfin was secured by law enforcement, towed to Phil Foster
Park in Riviera Beach, and then transported to the FWC Evidence
Facility in Jupiter, where the track data ended.

•

At approximately 1337 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Thiago Barosa at his
residence, utilizing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline (FWCDLE 012(01/08)). Inv. Phillips was
present for the statement. The following information was obtained: (For complete statement,
see attached) (audio recorder and body camera were used to document the statement)
o Mr. Barosa stated, "Me and my father were going out snorkeling. I think we were going
after some angelfish for the aquarium. There was a lot of people out there. Being
Thanksgiving and all."
o Mr. Barosa stated, "I heard some boat pretty close by. So, that's when I got concerned
and went up. And I did see the boat. And I didn' t think anything of it. And then my
father said somebody came paddling by and said something about being careful of the
boat."
o Mr. Barosa went back to fishing until he saw the rescue trucks. And that's when he
realized something happened - someone got hit.
o

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Mr. Barosa stated, "That's when the Coast Guard started circling. They came after me.
And they asked my dad something. My dad thought they asked him to stay close to the
boat. So, I swam up to them and asked them what was going on. And they asked me if I
had seen an arm.
Mr. Barosa stated, "I was gonna do a quick search for it in the general area where he got
hit. And eventually I found his arm, along with his dive flag, his weight belt, and a net.
So, I called the Coast Guard and I put his arm inside his net and handed it over to the
Coast Guard. And, I carried the weight vest and his flag to the beach and handed it over
to Police there."
When asked what time they got there, Mr. Barosa stated, "Probably got in the water
around 10:30 - 11:00. We were out there for maybe an hour or so before it happened."
When asked if there were a lot of people out that day, Mr. Barosa stated, "There was a
lot of people. We had flags. We had a kayak with a flag on it. People around us had
flags as well. There was a lot of people out there."
When asked how many groups there were, Mr. Barosa stated, " Not sure if they were
together, but I would say at least three or four groups."
When asked what type of flag he had, Mr. Barosa stated, "I had the smaller for
snorkeling. You know, the floating I just attach it to the kayak."
When asked what color the flag was, Mr. Barosa stated, " Red and white with across.
Dive flag. And his was the same - the one I found."
When asked how close he was to the boat when he saw it, Mr. Barosa stated, "I want to
say about 100 yards away - when I first saw it. I'm not sure exactly where he was when
he got hit, but he might have been about the same distance when I saw it. Basically,
when they shut off the engines when I came back up to look at it. I did think he was a
little too close to us. So, I told my dad to keep an eye on it."
When asked how far away their kayak was from them, Mr. Barosa stated, "Oh, it was
maybe 10 meters away. We were dragging it."

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When asked what reef they were on, Mr. Barosa stated, "Right by The Breakers over
there . I think it was first - between the first and second . We weren't in any buoys at
the time. Hadn't reached the buoys yet. We were just north of that."
When asked if the arm and flag were in close proximity to each other, Mr. Barosa
stated, "The net, the arm, and the flag were pretty close to each other. The weight belt
I found actually swimming back to the kayak. After I handed the arm to the Coast
Guard ."
When asked if it was where the boat was, Mr. Barosa stated, "Yeah, I think it was pretty
much right where he got hit. And I'm assuming his weight belt must have been drug or
they took it off at some point."
When asked if he went to that reef often, Mr. Barosa stated, "Yes."
When asked if he usually saw divers/snorkelers there, Mr. Barosa stated, "Yes,
especially closer to the buoys. People from The Breakers. A lot of spearfishing. I've
been spearfishing myself in this area . There' s quite a bit of life to attract people.
There' s a lot of snorkelers in that area."

o
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•

When asked what type of kayak he had, Mr. Barosa stated, "It was a double kayak green. Pelican. It's a big kayak - green. Very visible."
Mr. Barosa confirmed no one was on the kayak at the time of the incident.
Mr. Barosa stated, "The wind was blowing south. I think the kayak would have been a
little closer to the boat."
When asked about the weather conditions, Mr. Barosa stated, "Beautiful. Initially it
wa sn't windy at all. It was pretty calm. The currents were really weak at the time. Even
after the accident it was pretty soft current, but the winds started blowing pretty heavy.
From what I remember, it was blowing south. It was blowing strong south. So, it got a
little rough. When I went in for the arm and was flagging them down, my dad drifted
quite a bit south with the kayak. Before then it was pretty calm. Sunny. Good day."
Statement was concluded at 1349 hrs.
Mr. Barosa marked locations on a map of the area during his statement.

At approximately 1445 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Justin Ott at his residence,
util izing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline {FWCDLE 012(01/08)). Inv. Phillips was present
for the statement. The following information was obtained: (For complete statement, see
attached) (audio recorder and body camera were used to document the statement)
o Mr. Ott stated, " Pretty much I was with Christine Raininger, my other friend Leanna
Moore and we swam out at Atlantic Street/Road there. Straight out second reef. Cruise
around . Came back in to first reef. Been out about an hour already. And once we're at
the first reef kinda cruising around that's when we saw another group of guys, two guys
and a kayak."
o Mr. Ott stated, "Ten minutes later see this boat rippin' down the reef. He was actually
on the reef. In between us and the beach. Doin' 40 mph, I'd say more or less."
o Mr. Ott stated, "Me and Christine are yelling and waving at the guy. When he passes us,
he slows down, finally. At that point, we started hearing some noises/commotion and
realize there's actually two other people in the water that were inshore of us by about
100 yards. No, about 150 feet maybe. Wasn't even that far."

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Mr. Ott stated, "Heard the guy moaning and yelling and making noises. So, she paddled
over. Took care of them. I took my friend Leanna Moore and my other buddy Ernie,
came out later, we went to the beach."
When asked if there were a lot of people in the water that day, Mr. Ott stated, "In the
immediate area, there were four of us. So, it was three of us initially. My buddy Ernie
came out and met us there. And the other two guys in the kayak - 100 feet from us
with their flag. We had our flag. She had her paddleboard. And I guess the other two
guys were not far from us with their flag. But we didn't see them when we were in the
area, but that was about it. Maybe six - eight total people out there."
When asked how far they were from the beach, Mr. Ott stated, "Well that first reef is
not very far out. So, 200 - 250 yards out. Eight foot of water. Shallow out there."
When asked how far the boat was from them when it went by, Mr. Ott stated, "From
me directly, 80-100 feet probably."
When asked who had their dive flag, Mr. Ott stated, "I had my flag. Christine, she had
her paddleboard. I had the flag on myself."
When asked how far their flag was from them, Mr. Ott stated, " It's on a 40-foot rope.
So, max it was 40 feet away."
When asked what the drift was that day, Mr. Ott stated, "So that day, there's no
current. It was calm as could be. Clear as could be. Sunny. Beautiful day. Three other
flags in the water."
When asked to describe his dive flag, Mr. Ott stated, "It's a yellow buoy, post with a lxl
snorkel flag. Red with a white diagonal."
Mr. Ott confirmed he had the stiffener in his dive flag.
When asked if the kayak guys had a flag, Mr. Ott stated, "The two kayak guys, I don't
know them, they had a flag on their kayak."
When asked how far the other groups were from him, Mr. Ott stated, "When the
incident happened, the guys with the kayak were maybe within 100 ft to the southeast
of me. The guys who got struck were 150 feet, more or less, to the southwest of me.
Inside of me ."
Mr. Ott stated, " I dive this spot all the time."
When asked if it was a popular snorkel/dive area, Mr. Ott stated, "I really do see other
free divers/snorkelers there. Common sense, on a clear day that's a known reef. It's
very visible."
When asked what the water was like that day, Mr. Ott stated, "Super flat, super clear.
Probably 60-80-foot visibility. Good day."
When asked how close the boat came to his dive flag, Mr. Ott stated, "Definitely within
100 feet."
When asked to describe the boat, Mr. Ott stated, " I want to say it's about 35 foot. I
guess it was a Yellowfin. Three props. Three motors. With light blue accent. White and
blue, more or less. Center console."

o

When asked if he saw any other boats that day, Mr. Ott stated, "Yeah, but they usually
know their place. They're further out."

o
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Statement was concluded at 1453 hrs.
Mr. Ott marked locations on a map of the area during his statement.

34

 •

At approximately 1553 hrs., I took a sworn recorded statement from Leanna Moore at 1401
Clare Ave, West Palm Beach, utilizing the FWC Recorded Statement Outline (FWCDLE
012(01/08)). Inv. Phillips was present for the statement. The following information was
obtained: (For complete statement, see attached) (audio recorder and body camera were used
to document the statement)
o Ms. Moore stated, "Thanksgiving Day, none of us had plans in the morning. Justin and I,
second date ever, decide to go out snorkeling with Christine. She brings her
paddleboard. We had all of our gear. Some friends were going to meet us out there.
We ended up meeting with them while we were snorkeling."
o Ms. Moore stated, "We started off around 11-ish, and we headed out to the second

o

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reef. So, the furthest one out. And spent a good amount of time there. Finding a lot of
really cool stuff."
Ms. Moore stated, "So, we were heading in to the first reef. It was Justin and I
swimming in and Christine had the paddleboard, so she was a little bit behind us. But
we all had flags."
Ms. Moore stated, "We could tell there were like other people around us. But we
weren't all out there as one group. But when you're out there it is almost like you are
one big group cause you're in such a small area on the reef. So, we were conscious of
like a couple other groups around us."
Ms. Moore stated, "We all came up to take a little breath of air and look around and get
our eyes out of the water for a minute. And that's when we saw the boat, the Yellowfin
that hit Carter, speeding on by. And we were freaking out. We were kinda yelling at
him. It was mostly Christine, but we were trying to like assist and help her. And say,
"What the fuck? Slow down. You're like really going fast."
Ms. Moore stated, "And then you could tell he was like confused. Like, "Why are these
people yelling at me?" And he was already, like, too close to, like, the reef, the beach,
to us. Just, like, being in the water, we felt like he was too close to us. That's why we
were freaking out."
Ms. Moore stated, "And he kinda like looked at us in confusion, like I said. And then we
were like, "Oh my gosh, there's a person right there." Cause we were conscious, like I
said, of other people around us. And then, they had their dive flag. So, we started
screaming, "There's a person right there. Slow down." And that's when he, like, deaccelerated, I guess they call it. Like let off the gas. At that point, he was continuing
south, made a little bit of a loop. And that's when we heard either Carter or Andy
screaming at the top of their lungs. Could tell there was a commotion."
Ms. Moore stated, "So, the boat went back over to them after we were like "You just hit
him." Cause we assumed that's what it was when we heard the yelling. So, that's when
Christine jumped up on her board kneeling and could kinda see more. And immediately
paddled over and helped Andy lifting Carter onto the boat."
Ms. Moore stated, "He did have his dive flag. And that's why we were like "There's a
person right there." And we could like see the snorkels. But it was like fairly close to
t he beach. Like way too close. Like, I've grown up boating and you don't go that close.
Especially if you're like a local and you know that's the reef. That's where people
snorkel. That's what they do there."

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When asked how crowded it was that day, Ms. Moore stated, "There were a few other
groups. I mean, it was Thanksgiving Day, so everyone had the day off pretty much. And
there was a guy on a kayak. There was our group. There was probably one other group
near us, a little further out east. Carter was a little bit south and west of us. So, we
were kinda in the middle and all these groups were be bopping around us. There were a
few boats offshore. Just a bunch of people on the beach."
When asked if she thought it was a busy day for snorkeling, Ms. Moore stated, "More
than usual. And there were a lot of flags in the water. And a lot of objects, like we had
a paddleboard. And one group had a kayak. So, it's just like a lot. So, if someone was
cruising with a boat, and you see all these different groups kind of in one condensed
area, it's like you should stay away."
When asked how close the boat was, Ms. Moore stated, "To us? Like way less than a
football field. Like less than half of a football field."
When asked how far away Carter's group was, Ms. Moore stated, "I don't really
remember. Maybe like, 30 yards. We were like in 10 feet of water, too. Cause it was
getting shallow."
Ms. Moore stated, "It was a crystal-clear day, like in the water."
When asked to describe the weather conditions, Ms. Moore stated, "Sunny. Clear skies.
Crystal clear water."
When asked how far the boat was when she first saw it, Ms. Moore stated, "He was
coming quick, so it all happened so fast. He was like coming from the north to the
south. It almost seemed like he had left the inlet and was cruising the beachside. And it
was not like it was choppy offshore where he had to be doing that. And I'd say, like I
said, less than half a football field away from us and we started being like, "What the
heck? Slow down. You are way too close ." Like too close for us. It could have hit any
of us. We were all close."

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When asked how close the boat came to her, Ms. Moore stated, "20 yards or maybe a
little over that. less than half a football field, like so close . So close that we could tell
there's a person right there and you're aiming right for him."
Statement was concluded at 1606 hrs.
Ms. Moore marked locations on a map of the area during her statement.

01/23/20
•

Inv. Luher and I picked up videos from Palm Beach Police Department for the recorded
interviews conducted by their officers and FWC statements at their facility (PBPD Hardroom).

•

At approximately 1350 hrs., Inv. Luher and I met with Carter Viss at St. Mary's Medical Center
(Rm 2310).
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Mr. Viss stated he had additional surgery to his right arm to clean the wound and was
performing limited walking as part of his physical therapy.
Mr. Viss stated he would possibly be discharged on Friday 1/24/20 at the conclusion of
four weeks of rehab.
Mr. Viss stated he would be moving into a new first floor apartment in Juno Beach.

36

 1/25/20
•

I reviewed the videos of PBPD Det. Burgoon's interviews of Ms. Raininger and Mr. Earl.
o The following information was obtained from Mr. Earl's interview: {For complete video,
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see attached)
Sworn interview by Det. Burgoon {9914) on 11/28/19 at approximately 1303 hrs.
Mr. Earl stated, " I would say we got out here, probably, 9:45 -10 o'clock. Somewhere
around there. Put our stuff north of The Breakers Hotel. I don't know how far - maybe
less than a quarter mile or so. We had buckets, my backpack with my car keys. Just
cause you'll usually put in and drift with the current."
Mr. Earl stated, "Carter had his flag on him. I stayed close to Carter. I didn't have a dive
flag on me. I was utilizing Carter's and swimming with him."
Mr. Earl stated, "So, we walked to The Breakers and that's where we kicked off at. We
went out on the reef system they have out there. 150 yards. 200 yards. Somewhere in
that area."
Mr. Earl stated, "We were out for a while. Hour and a half- two hours. Maybe more.
But we were out for a while and said hey let's head back in. We both looked at shore
and saw where we had those buckets. We saw them on shore."
Mr. Earl stated, "So, we pointed where we were at in the water and said our buckets are
there so let's just swim this way, which is north west."
Mr. Earl stated, "We started swimming in. I was looking down when the incident
happened, and I just heard a loud noise. I mean you can hear the propellers when
you're snorkeling. When they're closer, it gets louder and you hear it more."
Mr. Earl stated, "I had heard that. And I was probably at the time, I would say that I was
25 feet or so away from Carter, and I looked up and the boat had passed that same
distance. And at the time when it happened, I knew where he was at and the vicinity.
But I was going to look up and say, "Holy shit, that boat was close." And Carter bobbed
up and was screaming."
Mr. Earl stated, "Obviously he was injured. I could tell he was injured. I could tell it was
from the boat. Right away. Cause it was right after the boat passed and he was two
seconds later he was bobbing. He was screaming real loud."
Mr. Earl stated, "He couldn't stay above water. I didn't know what was injured, but I
saw blood too. I swam right over to him and held him. And then I noticed his right arm.
Right close to the elbow area was gone. I didn't know his legs, but he was telling me he
couldn't keep up. So, I held him above water, and I started screaming for help."
Mr. Earl stated, "The boat that had struck him had slowed and kinda turned. Christine
was there. I was just holding him up. Christine came over. The boat came back
eventually."
Mr. Earl stated, " I kept screaming, "Help. Call 911." Christine swam over to us and she
had put her two hands around his arm to stop the blood . Which was working and then
she going to swim back to her paddleboard to get a bungee cord for a tourniquet."
When asked how far offshore they were at the time, Mr. Earl stated, "I'd say 150 yards.
We were on the reef system. 150 yards roughly. Heading in."

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Mr. Earl stated, "I don't know how many people were on the boat. I just saw two. Guy
with a white visor. Maybe 40's. And then an older man, who helped pull him into the
boat to lay him flat on the back deck."
Mr. Earl stated, "They applied the tourniquet. I believe that was when they applied the
tourniquet to his arm and both his legs. Both his legs were severed too. One on the
kneecap and his other leg was severed below the kneecap. I believe in both of them I
saw bone. I know I saw the kneecap. And obviously his arm."
Mr. Earl stated, "After that, I was just trying to calm him. He was conscious the whole
time but screaming. I just tried to calm him."
Mr. Earl stated, "The boat drove him into shore and the ambulances and stuff were
already there. They came right in on the boat. Right onto the beach. And then loaded
him on a boogie board with the paramedics and they took him."
When asked which individual was driving the boat at the time of the incident, Mr. Earl
stated, " Honestly, I believe it was the ... He had a white visor, younger, mid 40's."
Mr. Earl stated, "Carter had his dive flag up. Christina had her dive flag up. And I think
there was another one up out there too. He actually hit Carter's dive flag and his rope
got wrapped around his props."
When asked if the rope was in his props, Mr. Earl stated, "I believe so. Yes, cause it
dragged in with him. It definitely got hit, cause it had broken off the actual buoy.
Interview concluded at 1310 hrs.
The following information was obtained from Ms. Raininger's interview: (For complete
video, see attached)
Interview by Det. Burgoon (9914) on 11/28/19 at approximately 1252 hrs.
When asked if she saw the boating accident, Ms. Raininger stated, "Yes, I saw it. The
boat was coming traveling south at over 30mph, on plane. This boat has three engines
on it. It was going very fast."
Ms. Raininger stated, " I heard them coming before they came to my group, which was a
little bit north. There was about three groups in the water. We were the most north."
Ms. Raininger stated, "I start waving while I'm in the water. Right beside my dive flag.
They look at me. Slow down a little bit. And then pass over very close to the second
group of divers. And then I see them strike . .. I see two people get struck in the water."
Ms. Ra ininger stated, "They slowed down a little bit. I had a paddleboard beside me, so
I get on my paddle board to go over to them. I see blood in the water. Andy is holding
Carter up out of the water."
Ms. Raininger stated, "The boat had come around. Shut off the engines. We made sure
the engines were off. And we brought them to the back end of the boat."
Ms. Raininger stated, "Once I got off the paddleboard, I got to them, saw that Carter's
arm had been severed, and grabbed it to try to have the blood slow- to stop bleeding."
Ms. Raininger stated, "The boat had a first aid kit on it, so there's two guys and a child, a
young girl. I guess they put the girl up front, but I only saw the guys after that."
Ms. Raininger stated, "They pulled out the first aid kit. They had a gauze that they used
as a tourniquet. So, we got that on. As soon as we had that on ."
Ms. Raininger stated, "I got up onto the back of the boat, took off my fins to help him be
laid on the back where it's sort of flat. Pulled him up."
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Ms. Raininger stated, "Put another couple of tourniquets just above his kneecaps. One
leg was cut open in the front, just below the kneecap. The other one was also cut -very
broken. Two tourniquets."
Ms. Raininger stated, "When we got to the boat, I saw they were on the phone. I told
them we were just north of The Breakers. Made sure they knew where they were."
Ms. Raininger stated, "Once we got him up onto the back of the boat, we pulled him in
away from the engines and I told him to go to shore very slowly."
Ms. Raininger stated, "When he beached it, I had to tell him to tilt the engines and slow
it. This guy was really shaking though. like he tried to tie the tourniquet and he was
like ... He was in shock, too. We got to shore and then like here (passed him over to
FD) ."
Ms. Raininger stated, "All the dive flags were up. The guy was traveling on top of the
reef with three dive flags. We were all within the 100 feet of our dive flags."
Ms. Raininger stated, "This guy does not know how to operate a boat and follow the
law."
Interview concluded at 12:56 hrs.

01/26/20
•

I reviewed PBPD HardRoom video.
o The following information was obtained from the video: (For complete video, see
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attached)
Video starts with empty room at 11/28/19 14:29:15 (all times taken from video
timestamp).
14:30:26 Inv. Luher and Mr. Stanton II enter room.
14:31:13 Inv. Luher tells Mr. Stanton II that two people have identified him as the driver.
14:31:15 Mr. Stanton II admits to driving by saying, "I was."
14:31:25 Mr. Stanton II agrees the other two gentlemen were in the boat.
14:32:20 Mr. Stanton II provides information for "Recorded Statement Outline" form.
14:33:54 Inv. Lu her explains to Mr. Stanton II he is being recorded by her body camera
and recording equipment in the room.
14:34:50 Inv. Luher checks her phone and states the time as 2:38 pm.
14:35:26 Inv. Lu her reads the Miranda portion of the form.
14:35 :51 Mr. Stanton II acknowledges his understanding of his rights.
14:36:16 Mr. Stanton II is sworn in for statement.
15:02:50 Statement ends
15:03 :33 Mr. Stanton II leaves the room
15:03 :55 Inv. Coffin and Inv. Luher enter room to discuss a possible blood draw.
15:04:05 Inv. Luher states Mr. Stanton II has no blood shot eyes and she does not smell
anyt hing.
15:04:19 Inv. Coffin and Inv. Luher exit room to get Mr. Stanton II.
15:04:48 Mr. Stanton II enters the room with Inv. Luher.
15:04:50 Inv. Coffin enters the room and is introduced to Mr. Stanton II.
15:05:17 Inv. Luher informs Mr. Stanton II she has no indication that he is impaired.
15:05:23 Mr. Stanton II confirms he had half of a Truly at the house.
15:05:30 Inv. Luher asks Mr. Stanton II if he would consent to a blood draw.
39

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15:06:02 Inv. Coffin asks Mr. Stanton II if he was feeling any effects of alcohol at this
time.

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15:06:03 Mr. Stanton II responds, "No. No. Not at all. Nor was I during the incident."
15:06:06 Inv. Coffin ask Mr. Stanton II if he would consent to a blood draw.
15:06:07 Mr. Stanton II responds, "No."
15:06:18 Mr. Stanton II leaves the room.

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15:06:59 Inv. Coffin and Inv. Luher leave the room .
15:43:52 Inv. Luher, Inv. Coffin, and Mr. Stanton II enter the room.
15:44:00 Inv. Luher reminds Mr. Stanton II the room is being recorded.
15:44:10 Inv. Lu her explains t he Permission to Search form for the vessel.
15:44:50 Mr. Stanton II signs the Permission to Search form for the vessel.
15:46:24 Mr. Stanton II requests permission to read the form.
15:46:59 Inv. Coffin signs Permission to Search form for the vessel as witness.
15:47:07 Inv. Luher explains the Consent to Search form for the GPS units.
15:48:18 Mr. Stanton II signs the Consent to Search form for the GPS units.
15:49:45 Inv. Coffin, Inv. Luher, and Mr. Stanton II leave the room.
15:53:23 Inv. Coffin enters the room.
15:54:04 Inv. Luher and Mr. Stanton (father) enter the room.
15:55:20 Inv. Luher tells Mr. Stanton that independent witnesses ident ified Mr. Stanton
II as the operator of the vessel and no one else drove the vessel.
15:55:24 Mr. Stanton confirmed these statements.

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15:55:48 Mr. Stanton provides information for "Recorded Statement Outline" form.
15:57:00 Inv. Luher turns off her body camera due to a dead battery.
15:57:28 Inv. Luher explains to Mr. Stanton he is being recorded by Inv. Coffin's body
camera and recording equipment in the room.
15:58:12 Mr. Stanton is sworn in for statement.
16:25:05 Statement ends.
16:26:46 Inv. Luher and Mr. Stanton leave the room.
16:27:22 Inv. Luher and 960 F.S. enter the room.
16:28:28 960 F.S. provides information for "Recorded Statement Outline" form.
16:28:37 Inv. Luher explains to 960 F.S. he is being recorded by body camera and
recording equipment in the room.
16:30:17 960 F.S. is sworn in for statement.
16:45:05 Statement ends.
16:45:25 960 F.S. asks if there is someone for Mr. Stanton II to talk to regarding the

o

incident and Inv. Luher states there is a victim's advocate available.
16:46:34 I 960 F.S.

o
o
o
o
o
o

o
o
o
o
o

16:47:40 Inv. Luher tells 960 F.S. based on Rachel's Law, everyone on the vessel was
also a victim.
16:48:32 960 F.S. asks how they can get an update from the hospital and Inv. Coffin
tells him they cannot due to HIPAA.
16:51:29 960 F.S. leaves the room.
16:51:40 Inv. Coffin and Inv. Luher leave the room.
16:53:03 Video ends.
40

 02/14/20
•

I reviewed FWC body camera videos and obtained the following information not previously
noted: (all times taken from video timestamp)
o

o
o
o

o

o

8C20002325_2011_112819172508_3 - Inv. Coffin
• Nothing significant to case.
BC20002325_2011_112819172510_4 - Inv. Coffin
•
Permission to search signing with Mr. Stanton II in P8PD interview room.
8C20002325_2011_112819172512_5 - Inv. Coffin
• Sworn statement with Mr. Stanton (father) in PBPD interview room.
BC20002325_2011_112819172515_6 - Inv. Coffin
• Sworn statement wit 960 F.S. in PBPD interview room.
BC20004760_429_112819174846_2 - Ofc. Riggs
• 11/28/19 13:57:43 -Video starts.
• Ofc. Riggs and Ofc. Langley at Phil Foster Park boat ramp.
14:01- SeaTow and incident vessel pull up to dock with P8PD Ofc. Machate on
•
board incident vessel.
• 14:14:46 - Ofc. Riggs boards vessel to take photos.
• GPS units and Vesselview are still turned on.
• 14:15:30 - Ofc. Riggs gets off vessel.
• 14:48:47 -Video ends.
BC20004764_117 _112819174226_1- Ofc. Pecka
11/28/19 15:29:51-Video starts.
•
•
•
•
•

o

Ofc. Riggs is on incident vessel and provides Garmin GPS model numbers.
15:34:08 - Ofc. Riggs turns off GPS units (entire system) at the direction of Inv.
Coffin.
15:35 - Ofc. Riggs reads off engine serial numbers.
15:43:33 - Video ends.

8C20004868_128_112919005753_1 - Inv. Luher (Time stamp on Inv. Luher's bodycam
does not show correct time. Time stamp is approximately 1 hour behind actual time)
• 11/28/19 14:47:39 -Video starts.
•

Inv. Luher, Capt. Schaeffer, Ofc. Stone, P8PD Sgt. Reyes, and P8PD Sgt. Rothrock
are at N. Ocea n and Root Trail.

•
•
•
•

Sgt. Reyes states there were three flags out.
Sgt. Reyes states one of the flags appears to have been hit by the boat.
Sgt. Reyes states Ofc. Augustin heard someone say they were the operator.
14:49:55 - Inv. Lu her introduces herself to Mr. Stanton, 960 F.S., Mr. Stanton II
and Ms. Stanton.
Mr. Stanton states only the three males were on the boat.
14:50:53 - Inv. Luher receives a phone call and is transferred to the Assistant

119.071(3)(a) and 281.301, F.S

•
•
•
•

State Attorney.
Inv. Luher provides incident details to the State Attorney.
14:55:46 - Inv. Lu her calls On-call State Attorney phone number and speaks to
ASA Laurie and provides her with incident details.
41

 •

14:59:45 - Ofc. Stone provides Inv. Luher with vessel documentation paperwork
and occupants' driver's licenses.

•

15:00:35 - Ofc. Stone and Sgt. Reyes state Ms. Raininger assisted with the first
aid and identified the male in the white shirt and visor (Mr. Stanton II) as the
operator.

•

15:01:30- Sgt. Reyes questions Ofc. Augustin regarding what he heard of the
occupants' discussion of the incident.

•

Ofc. Augustin states the gentleman in the white shirt and visor stated, "I didn't
see him . I was driving and I was looking left and right, as I should be. And I
didn't see them."

•

Sgt. Reyes confirms Ofc. Augustin did not ask any questions and the operator
stated he was the operator of the boat.
Ofc. Augustin states Mr. Stanton ll's mother came over to console him and that
was when he broke down and made the statement.
15:03:45 - Inv. Luher asks Mr. Stanton, Mr. Stanton II, and 960 F.S. to move to
the Palm Beach Police Department station to continue with the investigation.

•
•
•

15:05:30 - Inv. Luher speaks to Ms. Raininger regarding the incident.

•

o

15:06:45 - Ms. Raininger looks at and identifies the guy in the white shirt and
visor (Mr. Stanton 11) as the operator.
• 15:08:54 - Video ends.
BC20004868_128_112919005755_2 - Inv. Luher
• 11/28/19 15:10:06 -Video starts.
• Video to record weather/water conditions
• Inv. Lu her states wind very strong out of the north east.
• 15:10:50 - Video ends.
BC20004868_128_112919005757_3-lnv. Luher
• Mirandized sworn statement with Mr. Stanton II in PBPD interview room.
BC20004868_128_112919005800_4 - Inv. Luher

o

• Sworn statement with Mr. Stanton (father) in PBPD interview room.
BC2004868_128_112919102950_ 1 - lnv. Luher-

o

o

•

11/29/19 -Audio only statement with Andrew Earl at St. Mary' s Medical
Center.

•

Mr. Earl states there were three dive flags around them - Christine with her
paddleboard and flag, a kayak, and Carter's flag.
Mr. Earl states it happened around 12:30.
Mr. Earl states Carter's dive flag had broken previously but he had fixed that to
stay up.

•
•
•

Mr. Earl states he came up multiple times to locate the flag and saw it up
throughout the dive.

•
•

Mr. Earl states he looked for the flag to locate where Carter was.
Mr. Earl states the flag was attached to about 15 foot of rope and Carter's dive
belt.

•

Mr. Earl states they were just snorkeling.

•

Mr. Earl states he was wearing fins, but Carter did not have fins.

42

 •

Mr. Earl states they had collected a lionfish for the invasive species tank at
Loggerhead.

•
•

Mr. Earl states he was 150 yards from shore.
Mr. Earl states they were out for a couple of hours.

•

Mr. Earl states by the time he heard the boat and looked up the boat was to his
northwest.
Mr. Earl states he was looking for Carter to say, "That was close" and Carter was
screaming, and he saw blood.
Mr. Earl states the boat and Carter were 25 - 30 feet east of him.
Mr. Earl states the boat was going so fast that it was passing him by the time he
looked up.
Mr. Earl states the dive flag was trailing Carter by about 15 feet and he was 25
feet from Carter.

•
•
•
•

o

•
Mr. Earl states Christine was northeast of them.
8C20004868_128_112919102952_2 - Inv. Luher
•
•

11/29/19 09:35:44 -Video starts at St. Mary's Medical Center.
Inv. Luher introduces herself to Carter Viss' parents.

•
•

o

Inv. Luher describes incident to Carter's parents.
09:41:50 - Inv. Luher informs the parents there were no signs of alcohol or
impairment in the operator or the passengers of the vessel.
• 09:48:06 - Video ends.
8C20004936_687_120419172444_6- Ofc. Stone
• 11/28/19 13:01:01-Video starts at N. Ocean and Root Trail.
• P8PD Sgt. Rothrock informs Ofc. Stone that SeaTow is on scene to tow the
vessel, one of their officers will be on board the vessel to maintain chain of
custody, and no one has questioned the owner.
• Sgt. Rothrock states they have the guy's dive flag/equipment and the arm was
found and taken to St. Mary' s.
•

Sgt. Rothrock identifies the people involved in the incident (operator, occupant,
and witnesses).

•
•

13:08:15 - SeaTow pulls vessel off the beach.
13:15:00 - Ofc. Stone informs vessel occupants Inv. Luher is on the way and
vessel is being towed to Phil Foster Park.
13:16:20- 960 F.S. returns to the beach .
13:16:37 - Mr. Stanton and Mr. Stanton II can be seen drinking bottled water.
13:17:00- Mr. Stanton identifies the people that were on board the vessel (Mr.
Stanton, Mr. Stanton II 960 F.S.
).
Ms. Ra ininger's paddleboard, dive gear, and dive flag are visible in the video.
13:36:05 - Inv. Luher arrives at the beach .
Ofc. Stone updates Inv. Luher on (operator, occupants, and witnesses).
13:37:37 - Mr. 8arosa is seen leaving the beach with his green kayak and dive
flag.

•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

13:46:18 - Sgt. Reyes informs Inv. Lu her that Ms. Raininger is definite the
gentleman in the white shirt and visor (Mr. Stanton II) was the operator.

43

 •

13:46:35 - Sgt. Rothrock states Ofc. Augustin has heard Mr. Stanton II admit to
being the operator.

•

13:48:20- Inv. Luher's body camera video (BC20004868_128_112919005753_1)
starts at this point.

•

13:49:55 - Inv. Luher introduces herself to Mr. Stanton,
and Ms. Stanton.

•
•

13:50:55 - Ofc. Stone obtains driver's licenses from Mr. Stanton and Mr.
Mr. Stanton II provides Ofc. Stone with USCG documentation and FL
Registration information for vessel.
13:54:00 - Sgt. Rothrock informs Ofc. Stone the victim's family has been
notified.

•
•
•

960 F.S. Mr. Stanton II
.
960 F.S.

13:59:45 - Ofc. Stone provides Inv. Luher with vessel documentation paperwork
and occupants' driver's licenses.
14:01:01 - Video ends.

02/15/20
•

I reviewed FWC body camera videos and obtained the following information not previously
noted:
o 8C20004936_687 _120419172446_7 - Ofc. Stone
• Video shows Ofc. Stone's view of Inv. Luher's body camera video:
(8(20004868_128_112919005753_1)
o 8C20007357 _635_120419140715_1- Inv. Fowler

o

o
o

o
o

• Sworn statement with Ms. Lopopolo at S. County Rd. and Peruvian Ave.
8C20007357 _635_121019144431_1- Inv. Fowler
• Sworn statement with Ms. Raininger at FWC Regional Office.
8(20007357_635_121319183703_1- Inv. Fowler
• Sworn statement with Ms. Marulli at FWC Jupiter Office.
8C20007357 _635_121319183706_2 - Inv. Fowler
• Sworn statement with Mr. Earl at FWC Jupiter Office.
BC20007357_635_122619170234_1- Inv. Fowler
• Sworn statement with Mr. Viss at St. Mary's Medical Center.
8C20007357 _635_122619170236_2 - Inv. Fowler
•

12/26/19 16:44:19 -Video starts in Mr. Viss' hospital room at St. Mary's
Medical Center.

•

Mr. Viss is telling Inv. Luher how he attempted to avoid the vessel at the time of
incident.

•

Mr. Viss states at the time of impact he had turned parallel to the beach with his
head to the south.
Mr. Viss states he tried to keep his back and head away from the vessel.
Mr. Viss states he was pushing away from the vessel with his arms and legs.

•
•

o

o

•
16:48:23 - Video ends.
8C20007357-635-122719135531_1- Inv. Fowler
• Sworn statement with Mr. 8arosa at his residence.
8C20007357 _635_122719145926_1- Inv. Fowler
•

Sworn statement with Mr. Ott at his residence.
44

 o

o

o

BC20007357 _635_122719161007_1- Inv. Fowler
• Sworn statement with Ms. Moore at 1401 Clare Ave, West Palm Beach, FL.
BC20004868_128_122619171212_1- Inv. Luher
• Video shows Inv. Luher's view of Inv. Fowler's body camera video:
(BC20007357_635_122619170234_1)
BC20004868_128_122619171214_2 - Inv. Luher
• Video shows Inv. Luher's view of Inv. Fowler's body camera video:
(BC20007357_635_122619170236_2)

VESSEL DESCRIPTION AND DAMAGE
V-1 Description:
V-1 is a 2008, 36' in length fiberglass Yellowfin center console vessel. The hull identification number for
the vessel is YFY36186D808. The vessel is USCG documented under the name "Talley Girl" with a hailing
port of Palm Beach, FL. The vessel is currently registered for recreational use in the State of Florida to
Daniel Welch Stanton II (DOB 02/14/89). The Florida registration decal (001284973) was located with
the vessel's USCG documentation certificate. The vessel is powered by three (3) 400Hp Mercury Verado
outboard motors with high performance lower units and five (5) blade propellers.
V-1 Damage: No visible damage related to the incident was apparent.

Owner/Operator of V-1: (Uninjured)
Daniel Welch Stanton II (DOB: 02/14/89)
214 Chilean Ave., Apt I
Palm Beach, FL 33480
FL DL #: S535-179-89-054-0
V-1 Occupant: (Uninjured)
Daniel Welch Stanton (DOB: 06/25/54)
1100 N Lake Way
Palm Beach, FL 33480
FL DL #: 5353-179-54-225-0
V-1 Occupant: (Uninjured)

960 F.S.

960 F.S.

Marsy's Law Exemption

45

 960 F.S.

- Marsy's Law Exemption

S-1 Swimmer: (Injured, Amputation right arm, fractures and lacerations to left wrist, left leg, and right
leg.)
Carter Julian Viss (DOB: 08/03/94)
1110 Lakeshore Dr. #206
West Palm Beach, FL 33403
FL DL #: V200-110-94-283-0
INCIDENT LOCATION AND SCENE DESCRIPTION
The incident occurred in Florida State waters, offshore of the Island of Palm Beach in Palm Beach
County. The area along the shoreline of the island of Palm Beach, near The Breakers hotel, has a wellknown reef system that is very popular with snorkelers and divers. The first reef is near shore in shallow
water and snorkelers/divers often swim out from the beach. Since people were off work for the holiday,
there were numerous groups out on the beach and in the water.
The location where the incident occurred was approximately 700 foot offshore of Everglades Ave. and N.
Ocean Blvd. at GPS coordinates N26 43.354, W80 01.919.
ENVIRONMENT
Air Temperature:
Water Temperature:
Lighting Conditions:
Wind Speed:
Water Conditions:
Water Visibility:
Tide Level:

77 degrees
79 degrees
Day
Moderate (7-14MPH)
Calm
60-100 ft
Outgoing - High Tide at 0901 hrs., Low Tide
1513 hrs.

ACCIDENT ANALYSIS
PRE-ACCIDENT
On 11/28/19 (Thanksgiving Day), Carter Viss and Andrew Earl decided to go snorkeling on the reef
system north of The Breakers Hotel on the Island of Palm Beach. They arrived around 0930 hrs. and
entered the water from the beach, to snorkel the first reef system (approx. 150 yards from shore). Mr.
Viss was wearing turquoise/black/white shorts, dive gloves, weight belt, and a mask/snorkel. Mr. Earl
was wearing tan shorts, dive fins, and a mask/snorkel. Mr. Viss had a dive flag/buoy with a 25 - 30 ft
white rope attached to his dive belt. Mr. Viss and Mr. Earl noticed two other snorkel groups in their
proximity with dive flags (one with a paddleboard and one with a kayak). Mr. Viss and Mr. Earl had been
snorkeling for a while when they decided to start swimming towards shore.

46

 At approximately 1147 hrs., Daniel Stanton II, his father (Mr. Stanton), 960 F.S.
and
left Mr. Stanton's house located on the west side of the Island of Palm
Beach in Mr. Stanton ll's 36-foot Yellowfin center console vessel for a pleasure cruise. They headed
north along the lntracoastal Waterway and out the Lake Worth Inlet. After exiting the inlet, Mr. Stanton
II turned south and cruised along the beach near shore. Mr. Stanton II was cruising in 15 - 20 feet of
water at an average speed of 53 mph (at the closest point he was 475 feet from shore). Mr. Stanton II
intended to cruise down to The Breakers, turn around, and head home.
ACCIDENT
At approximately 1204 hrs., Mr. Stanton II was passing offshore of Everglades Ave. and N. Ocean Blvd.
As the vessel neared the area, the snorkel group with the paddleboard and dive flag (consisting of Ms.
Raininger, Ms. Moore, Mr. Ott and one other male), heard the vessel and looked to see where it was.
Ms. Raininger stated the boat was inshore of her group, on plane, moving very fast, and passed within
30 feet of her group. Ms. Raininger stated as the boat passed, she was waving and screaming. Ms.
Raininger stated two of the men on the boat looked at her and acknowledged her. Mr. Stanton II stated
he first realized there were divers in the water when they were 30 feet to port. Mr. Stanton II powered
down and turned inshore.
Mr. Viss stated, "When we started swimming back, there was a lot of buzzing from boats in the water.
And I was swimming, kinda looking down, and I heard a very loud buzzing near me. I looked to the north
and I saw a big boat headed straight towards me. It was very close at the time. I had maybe three or
four seconds to think about what's going on. At that moment, I thought to myself, I can't let this boat
hit my torso or my head. So, I swam to the side and got as far away as I could from it and had my limbs
facing the boat. That's when the boat struck me." Mr. Viss stated he believed the vessel hit him with
the outside motor on the starboard (inland) side. Mr. Viss stated the vessel went between him and his
dive flag.
POST-ACCIDENT
After the vessel struck Mr. Viss, it slowed to a stop about 200 yards south of the snorkelers. Mr. Viss
returned to the surface, started screaming, and was having trouble staying afloat due to his injuries. Mr.
Earl swam over to Mr. Viss to help hold him up and immediately started yelling for help. Ms. Raininger
paddled over on her paddleboard and attempted to stop the blood coming from Mr. Viss' severed right
arm. Realizing someone had gotten injured, Mr. Stanton II drove his vessel back over to Mr. Viss and
helped get Mr. Viss onto the back of the vessel. Mr. Stanton II provided a first-aid kit so they could start
applying tourniquets to Mr. Viss' arm and legs before beaching his boat onshore to meet EMS
personnel. Mr. Viss was transported by EMS to St. Mary's Medical Center.

CONCLUSION
Based on the evidence and statements gathered to date, Daniel W Stanton II (DOB 02/14/89) was in
actual physical control of V-1 while upon the waters of the state at the time of the incident and was
responsible for its safe operation. Mr. Stanton admitted in spontaneous statements and statements to
responding law enforcement personnel that he was driving the vessel at the time of the incident. His
operation of the vessel was confirmed by his Mirandized sworn statement, the sworn statements of two

47

 of the occupants of the vessel (Daniel W Stanton (DOB 06/25/54) and 960 F.S.
the sworn statement of a witness (snorkeler: Christine Raininger (DOB 12/18/90).

and

On 11/28/19, Thanksgiving Day, it was a sunny, clear day with low wind. The water was clear (60 -100
ft. visibility) and there was no wind chop on the water. The area along the shoreline of the island of
Palm Beach, near The Breakers hotel, has a well-known reef system that is very popular with snorkelers
and divers. The first reef is near shore in shallow water and snorkelers/divers often swim out from the
beach . Since people were off work for the holiday, there were numerous groups out on the beach and
in the water.
Mr. Stanton 11, his father,

960 F.S.

, and

960 F.S.

decided to go for a

cruise in Mr. Stanton ll's vessel. Mr. Stanton II stated they were planning to run out the inlet, down to
The Breakers, and return home. Mr. Stanton II stated he was running at 4900 - 5000 rpm, about 50- 52
mph, which was his "cruise speed". Mr. Stanton stated they were running in 15 - 20 ft of water. The
GPS data obtained from the vessel confirm these statements showing the vessel averaging 53 mph as it
ran south along the beach parallel to the shoreline (closest point within 475 feet of the beach).
Based on the statements of Mr. Viss, Mr. Earl, Ms. Raininger, and Mr. Ott; at the time of the incident
there were three groups of snorkelers in the area: Mr. Viss/Mr. Earl, Ms. Raininger's group (4
snorkelers), and Mr. Barosa/his father. The three groups were either on the first reef or swimming to
shore from the first reef. All three groups had diver's down warning devices (dive flags), Ms. Raininger's
group had a yellow/black paddle board, and Mr. Barosa's group had a green two-person kayak.
Accord ing to Mr. Ott, all three groups were within 150 feet of each other. All three groups stated their
dive flags were within 30 - 40 feet of their group.
Pe r Florida St atute 327 .331 (6), a vessel other than a law-enforcement or rescue vesse l that approaches
within 300 feet of a divers-down wa rn ing device on waters other t han a river, inlet, or navigation
channel, must proceed no faste r t han is necessary t o maintain headway and steerage.
Mr. Stanton II was cruising at 50 - 52 mph in 15 - 20 ft of water in a well-known snorkeling/dive area .
Mr. Ott stated the boat came "definitely within 100 feet" of his dive flag. Ms. Raininger stated the boat,
" Passed me at about 30 feet." Mr. Earl stated, "I looked up and saw a large boat going very fast about
25 feet from me ." Finally, Mr. Viss stated the boat "went between me and my dive flag." Lt. Alber's
forensic ana lysis of the GPS data states, "When the vessel approached the area of the incident, the
average speed logged by the GPS was 51 MPH and the boat was approximately 790 feet from shore."
Mr. Stanton II operated his vessel well wit hin 300 feet of three divers-down warning devices at a high
rate of speed in violation of Florida Statute 327.331 (6).
Per Florida Statute 327 .33 (3), each person ope rating a vessel upon the waters of this state shall comply
with the navigation ru les (USCG Navigation Rules and Regu lations Handbook) .
Navigation Ru le 5 - Looko ut states: Every vessel shall at all time maintain a proper look-out by sight and
hearing as we ll as by all available means appropriat e in the prevail ing circumstances and conditions so
as to make a full appraisal
of the situation and of the risk of collision.
I
In Mr. Stanton ll's Mirandized statement, he stated, "Just didn't see them. Just driving the boat.
Looking around ." Mr. Stanton II stated he first realized there were divers in the water when they were
30 ft to the port. Ms. Raininger stated about the approaching vessel, "Just before. I started waving my
hands. Maybe 50 ft and then he passed probably with 30 ft . as close to us. And I'm waving and

48

 scream ing." Ms. Raininger continued to state, "There were three adult men on the boat - green shirt,
black shirt, white shirt. The black shirt and white shirt were in the back. They both looked at me. And
kind of like raised their arms. And I don't know if it was like a. .. or a... this, but they acknowledged
me." Mr. Stanton II failed to maintain a proper lookout to see three groups of snorkelers (total of 8
people) with three divers-down warning devices (dive flags), a green kayak, and a paddle board in crystal
clear waters with no chop. Mr. Stanton ll's failure resulted in Mr. Viss being struck by Mr. Stanton ll's
vessel and receiving serious bodily injuries from this incident.
Navigation Rule 6 - Safe Speed stat es: Every vessel shall at all times proceed at a safe speed so that she
can take proper and effective action to avoid coll ision and be st opped with a distance appropriate to the
preva iling circumstances and conditions.
Mr. Viss stated in his statement, "And I was swimming, kinda looking down, and I heard a very loud
buzzing near me. I looked to the north and I saw a big boat headed straight towards me. It was very
close at the time . I had maybe three or four seconds to think about what's going on. So, I swam to the
side and got as far away as I could from it and had my limbs facing the boat. That's when the boat
struck me." When asked how fast the boat was going, Mr. Viss stated, "Fast, it was loud. Very loud.
That's what got my attention from it. I probably had three-ish seconds to really think about it before it
hit me." When Mr. Earl was asked when he first saw the boat, he stated, "Literally when I came up, it
was probably over Carter." Mr. Earl stated, "There was no throttle down, from where I was at. Throttle
down, from what I saw, was after the fact. I don't know if he felt it or what. Or saw it at the last second.
I don't know, but I definitely didn't witness a throttle down. It was a boat going full speed over my
friend ." Lt. Albe r's forensic analysis of the GPS data states, "When the vessel approached the area of
the incident, the average speed logged by the GPS was 51 MPH and the boat was approximately 790
feet from shore." Lt. Alber's report also states, "There were no sudden speed or course changes
consistent with an evasive maneuver (Image 10)." Mr. Stanton II was cruising at SO - 52 mph in 15 - 20
f eet of water in a well-known snorkeling/dive area. Mr. Stanton II stated he first realized there were
divers in the water when they were 30 ft to the port, and he stated he immediately went to neutral. Mr.
Stanton II stated he thinks the diver was hit as he came down (from plane) . Mr. Stanton II was traveling
at a speed that did not allow him to take proper and effective action to avoid Mr. Viss.
Per Florida Statute 327.33(1), it is un lawfu l t o operate a vessel in a reckless manner. A person w ho
operates any vesse l in willful or wa nto n disrega rd for the safety of persons or property at a speed or in a
manner as to endanger, or likely to endanger, life or limb, or da mage the property of, or injure a perso n
is guilty of reckless operation of a vessel. Reckless operation of a vessel includes but is not limited to a
violation of s. 327.331(6).
Mr. Stanton II was in violation of Florida Statute 327.331(6) by operating his vessel at a high rate of
speed within 300 feet of a diver-down warning device and was therefore operating his vessel in a
reckless manner.

49

 VIOLATIONS

Daniel W. Stanton II (Operator of V-1) did commit the following violations:
NON-CRIMINAL

F.S. 327.331(6) -Vessel operation within 300 ft of diver-down warning device.

CRIMINAL

F.S. 327.33(1)- Reckless operation of a vessel
F.S. 327.33(3)(a) -Violation of a Navigation Rule: Rule 5 - Look out
F.S. 327.33(3)(a) -Violation of a Navigation Rule: Rule 6 - Safe Speed

Florida Statutes reference the above listed violations:

Definitions:

327.02 Definitions.-As used in this chapter and in chapter 328, unless the context clearly
requires a different meaning, the term:
(3) "Boating accident" means a collision , accident, or casualty involving a vessel in or upon, or
entering into or exiting from , the water, including capsizing, collision with another vessel or
object, sinking, personal injury, death, disappearance of a person from on board under
circumstances that indicate the possibility of death or injury, or property damage to any vessel
or dock.
(26) "Motorboat" means a vessel equipped with machinery for propulsion, irrespective of
whether the propulsion machinery is in actual operation.
(28)

"Navigation rules" means, for vessels on:

(a) Waters outside established navigational lines of demarcation as specified in 33 C.F.R. part
80, the International Navigational Rules Act of 1977, 33 U.S.C. s. 1602, as amended, including
the appendix and annexes thereto, through October 1, 2012.
(b) All waters not outside of such established lines of demarcation, the Inland Navigational
Rules Act of 1980, 33 C.F.R. parts 83-90, as amended, through October 1, 2012.
(30) "Operate" means to be in charge of, in command of, or in actual physical control of a
vessel upon the waters of this state, to exercise control over or to have responsibility for a
vessel's navigation or safety while the vessel is underway upon the waters of this state, or to
control or steer a vessel being towed by another vessel upon the waters of the state.
(31) "Owner" means a person, other than a lienholder, having the property in or title to a
vessel. The term includes a person entitled to the use or possession of a vessel subject to an

so

 interest in another person which is reserved or created by agreement and securing payment of
performance of an obligation. The term does not include a lessee under a lease not intended as
security.
(37)

"Recreational vessel" means a vessel:

(a)

Manufactured and used primarily for noncommercial purposes; or

(b)

Leased , rented, or chartered to a person for his or her noncommercial use.

(43) "Vessel" is synonymous with boat as referenced ins. 1(b), Art. VII of the State
Constitution and includes every description of watercraft, barge, and airboat, other than a
seaplane on the water, used or capable of being used as a means of transportation on water.
(44) "Waters of this state" means any navigable waters of the United States within the
territorial limits of this state, the marginal sea adjacent to this state and the high seas when
navigated as a part of a journey or ride to or from the shore of this state, and all the inland lakes,
rivers, and canals under the jurisdiction of this state.
NON-C RI MINAL:

327.331 Divers; definitions; divers-down warning device required; obstruction to
navigation of certain waters; penalty. (1)

As used in this section:

(a) "Diver" means a person who is wholly or partially submerged in the waters of the state
and is equipped with a face mask and snorkel or underwater breathing apparatus.
(b) "Divers-down buoy" means a buoyant device, other than a vessel, which displays a
divers-down symbol on three or four flat sides.
( c) " Divers-down flag" means a flag that displays a divers-down symbol and:
1.

Is square or rectangular and has a divers-down symbol on each face.

2. Has white diagonal stripes on each face which begin at the top, staff-side of the flag and
extend diagonally to the lower opposite corner.

3. If rectangular, is of a length that is not less than the height or more than 25 percent
longer than the height.
4. Has a wire, or other stiffener, or is otherwise constructed to ensure that it remains fully
unfurled and extended in the absence of a wind or breeze.
(d) "Divers-down symbol" means a rectangular or square red symbol with a white diagonal
stripe. If rectangu lar, the length may not be less than the height or more than 25 percent
longer than the height. The width of the stripe must be 25 percent of the height of the
symbol and the stripes must be oriented in the same direction if multiple stripes are
displayed.
(e) "Divers-down warning device" means a divers-down flag, buoy, or other similar
warning device that :

51

 1. Contains a divers-down symbo l t hat is at least 12 inches by 12 inches in dimension
when displayed from the water or at least 20 by 24 inches in dimension when displayed
from a vessel;

2. Is designed for, and used by, divers and dive vessels as a means to notify nea rby
boaters of the presence of a diver in t he wate rs of t he immed iate area; and
3.

Is prom inently visible when in use .

(f) " Underwater breathing apparatus" mea ns any apparatus, whethe r self-contai ned or
connected to a distant source of air or other gas, whereby a person w holly or partially
submerged in water is enabled to obta in or reuse air or any other gas or gases for breath ing
without returning to the surface of the water.
(2) All divers must prom inent ly display a dive rs-down warn ing device in t he area in w h ich
the diving occurs, other than w hen diving in an area custom arily used for sw immi ng on ly. A
divers-down buoy may not be used or displayed onboard a vessel.
(3) A diver or group of divers may not display one or more dive rs-down warning devices
on a river, inlet , or navigation channel, except in case of em ergency, in a manner t hat
unreasonably constitutes a navigationa l hazard.
( 4) Divers shall make reasonable efforts to stay w it hin 100 feet of a divers-down warning
device on rivers, in lets, and navigation cha nnels. A person operating a vessel on a river,
in let, or navigation channel must make a reasonable effort to ma intain a dist ance of at least
100 feet from any divers-down warning device .
(5) Divers must make reasonable efforts to stay w it hi n 300 feet of a divers-down wa rn ing
device on all waters other than rivers, inlets, and navigation cha nnels. A person operating a
vessel on waters other than a river, inlet, or navigation cha nnel must m ake a reasonable
effort to maintai n a distance of at least 300 feet from any divers-down wa rning device .
(6) A vessel other t han a law-enforcement or rescue vessel that approaches w it hin 100
feet of a divers-down wa rn ing device on a river, inlet, or navigation chan nel, or with in 300
feet of a divers-down warning device on waters other than a river, in let, or navigation
channel, must proceed no faster than is necessary to ma intain headway and steerageway.
(7) A divers-down warning device may not be displayed once all divers are aboa rd or
ashore. A person may not operate any vessel displayi ng a divers-down wa rning d evice
un less the vessel has one or more dive rs in the wate r.
(8) A divers-down warn ing device displayed from a vessel must be displayed from t he
highest poi nt of the vessel or another location that ensures t hat t he visibi lity of t he diversdown warning device is not obstructed from any direct ion.
(9) Except as provided ins. 327.33, a violation of t his sectio n is a noncriminal infraction
pun ishable as provided ins. 327.73.

52

 CRIMINAL :
Reckless Operation
327.33

Reckless or careless operation of vessel.-

(!) I t is unlawful to operate a vessel in a reckless m ann er. A person who operates any
vessel, or manipulates any water skis, aq uaplane, or similar device, in willful or wanton
disregard for t he safety of persons or pro perty at a speed or in a manner as t o endanger, or
likely to endanger, life or lim b, or damage the property of, or injure a person is guilty of
reckless operation of a vessel. Reckless operation of a vessel includes, but is not limited to,
a v iolation of s. 327.331(6). A person who violates t his subsection commits a misdemeanor
of the first degree, punishable as provid ed in s. 775.082 or s. 775 .083 .

(2) A person who ope rates any vessel upon the waters of this state shall operate the
vessel in a reasona ble and prudent m ann er, having regard for ot her waterborne traffic,
posted speed and wake restrictions, and all ot her attendant circumstances so as not to
enda nger the li fe, limb, or property of another person outside t he vessel or to endanger the
life, limb, or property of anot her person due to vessel overloading or excessive speed. The
fa ilure to operate a vessel in a mann er described in this subsection constitutes careless
operation. However, vessel wake and shoreline wash resulting from the reasonable and
prudent operatio n of a vesse l, absent negligence, does not constitute dam age or
endangerment to pro perty . A person who violates this subsection comm its a noncriminal
violation as defi ned in s. 775.08 .
(3) Each perso n operating a vessel upon the wat ers of this state shall comply wit h the
navigation rules.
(a) A person who violates th e navigation rules and t he violation results in a boating
accident causing serious bod ily injury as defined in s. 327 .353 or death, but the violation
does not constitu te reckless operation of a vessel, commits a misdem eanor of the second
degree, punishable as provid ed in s. 775.082 ors. 775 .083 .

327.353 ( b) The term " se rious bodily injury" means an injury to any person ,
including t he operat or, which consists of a physical cond ition t hat creates a
substantial risk of death,
(b) A person who violates the navigation rules and the v iolation does not constitute
reckless operation of a vesse l commits a noncriminal violation as defined in s. 775.08,
puni sha ble as provided in s. 327.73.
(c) Law enfo rce ment vessels may devi ate from the navig ationa l rules when such diversion
is necessa ry to t he performance of t heir du ties and when such deviation may be safely
acco mplished.
( 4) Unless otherwise provided in t his chapter, the ascertainment of fau lt in vessel
operations and boating accidents shall be determined according t o the navigation rules .
serious personal disfigurem ent, or prot racted loss or impairment of the function of any
bodi ly mem ber or organ.

Navigation Rule Violation:

53

 USCG NAVIGATION RULES AND REGULATIONS HANDBOOK
This handbook (ISBN: 9780160925665), which supersedes Commandant Instruction 16772.20,
Navigation Rules: International-Inland*, is a compendium , produced by the U.S. Coast Guard
Navigation Standards Branch, U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters, Washington, DC, of the:
International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, 1972 (72 COLREGS);
Inland Navigation Rules (33 CFR 83);
their respective technical annexes (33 CFR 84-90);
COLREGS Demarcation Lines (33 CFR 80);
Vessel Bridge-to-Bridge Radiotelephone Regulations, (33 CFR 26);
Vessel Traffic Management Regulations (33 CFR 161 ); and,
various other pertinent provisions of the U.S. Code and Code of Federal Regu lations
regarding compliance and penalties associated with the Navigation Rules.
Rule 5 - Lookout

t

Every vessel shall at all times maintain a proper look-out by sight and hearing as well as by all
available means appropriate in the prevailing circumstances and conditions so as to make a full
appraisal of the situation and of the risk of collision.
Rule 6 - Safe Speed_t

Every vessel shall at all times proceed at a safe speed so that she can take proper and effective
action to avoid collision and be stopped within a distance appropriate to the prevailing
circumstances and conditions. In determining a safe speed the following factors shall be among
those taken into account:
(a) By all vessels:
(i) The state of visibility;
(ii) The traffic density including concentrations of fishing vessels or any other vessels;
(iii) The maneuverability of the vessel with special reference to stopping distance and
turning ability in the prevailing conditions;
(iv) At night, the presence of background light such as from shore lights or from back
scatter from her own lights;
(v) The state of wind , sea and current, and the proximity of navigational hazards;
(vi) The draft in relation to the available depth of water.
(b) Additionally, by vessels with operational radar:
(i) The characteristics, efficiency and limitations of the radar equipment;
(ii) Any constraints imposed by the radar range scale in use;
(iii) The effect on radar detection of the sea state, weather and other sources of interference;
(iv) The possibility that small vessels , ice and other floating objects may not be detected by
radar at an adequate range;
(v) The number, location and movement of vessels detected by radar;
(vi) The more exact assessment of the visibility that may be possible when radar is used to
determine the range of vessels or other objects in the vicinity.

54