Yacht captain walks free in fatal VG boating collision case
A High Court jury has found South African yacht captain Lesley Joubert not guilty of all charges arising from a fatal boat collision near Saba Rock on Virgin Gorda that claimed the life of charter captain Stephen Cross Jr in November 2024.
After more than three hours of deliberations on Thursday, jurors unanimously acquitted Joubert of manslaughter, committing a reckless and negligent act, and failing to render assistance following the collision.
The case stemmed from a nighttime boating accident in the channel between Saba Rock and Bitter End Yacht Club on November 22, 2024. Cross Jr was operating a dinghy carrying six passengers to dinner when it was struck by a larger rigid inflatable boat (RIB) operated by Joubert, who was employed aboard the superyacht Eau La La.
Cross later died from injuries sustained in the collision.
In closing arguments, prosecutors contended that Joubert was travelling at an unsafe speed through the channel at night while rushing to collect guests from Necker Island. The Crown argued that his speed prevented him from maintaining a proper lookout and was a major contributing factor in the collision.
Prosecutors also relied on evidence from marine surveyor William Bailey, who testified that 15 knots at night was not a safe speed and that lower speeds could have reduced the severity of the injuries.
However, the defence, led by attorney Stephen Daniels of Capital Law, argued that the collision was caused by the dinghy’s lack of compliant navigation lights rather than Joubert’s speed. Daniels repeatedly told jurors that “sight by night is by light”, arguing that Joubert could not reasonably have been expected to see an unlit vessel crossing the channel on a dark, moonless night. He also pointed to expert evidence suggesting the dinghy had entered the path of the tender and that the absence of proper lighting impaired Joubert’s ability to avoid the collision.
Following the not-guilty verdict, attorney Daniels expressed sympathy to Cross’s family on behalf of Joubert and the vessel’s owners, describing the death as a tragedy while noting that justice required a balanced assessment of the evidence.
Justice Akilah Anderson then formally discharged Joubert, telling him he was free to go.
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PAYS TO BE WHITEEEE….. I SAID WHAT I SAID #KING LAWS
Not true. There are many locals walking free for the same crime.
https://www.virginislandsnewsonline.com/en/news/update-body-of-missing-female-reportedly-found-near-boat-accident-site
A travesty.
Another one for the books of Tiffany long losing history.
When my tax money pay her for retirement she laugh all the way to the bank with that track record she got there
The evidence be given to the jurors and YET they still be giving a no guilty verdict ALLL BECAUSE THEY DISLIKE THE DPP.
Tortola full of stupid ppl
The Dpp is very vindictive and engaging in using her office to go after persons she does not like, but God will punish her
Smh. The jury system does NOT work. We need to get rid of it. How many murderers, rapists, and other criminals are walking free because of it? Jurors are ordinary people with no legal training who are often asked to evaluate complex evidence, expert testimony, and legal standards they may not fully understand. How can people with no expertise in fields like forensics, medicine, psychology, or ballistics be expected to accurately determine whether someone is guilty or not? Their decisions can be influenced by personal biases, emotions, media coverage, and dominant personalities in the jury room. Different juries can hear similar cases and reach completely different verdicts, and there is little accountability for how those decisions are made. The result is a system that can produce wrongful convictions, wrongful acquittals, and inconsistent outcomes that leave both victims and the accused at the mercy of chance.
So mo negligence in this case? Wow.
The main reason this accident happened was that someone was on an unlit boat on a dark night, essentially invisible. Fifteen knots is not a reckless speed. I think the jury made the right decision.
Before the British the U.S. bought the Virgin Islands. This was the Danish West Indies. These so-called “South Africans are Danish (Dutchmen). They are filthy wicked people. Why the f**k would you let them in this country and set up shop? It is these devils who enslaved our ancestors in this part of the world. They’re the lowest of the low. Even Denmark doesn’t want them back.
Two wrongs don’t make a right he should have been charged for operating at 15 knots in an area like that. Marine surveyor William Bailey, who testified that 15 knots at night was not a safe speed and that lower speeds, could have reduced the severity of the injuries. In the pass I have told a lot of these guys it’s unsafe to operate at night without lights.
Why is he not in Court for going too fast? That does not seem to have been in dispute. Even if the other dinghy to blame for not showing lights. He still going too fast like idiots every day going too fast and showing no lights.