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The fiancee of a man who died on a cruise ship has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Royal Caribbean, alleging it negligently served her at least 33 alcoholic drinks and was responsible for her death after crew members pinned her to the ground and stood on her with their full body weight.
Connie Aguilar’s lawsuit for Michael’s death Virgil Seeks unspecified damages and a jury trial. Royal Caribbean did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment Tuesday.
Aguilar and Virgil were on a roundtrip trip los angeles to Ensenada, MexicoAt the time of Virgil’s death in December 2024, along with other members of his family, including his autistic son, the lawsuit said.
It says that crew members on Navigator of the Seas served Virgil more than two dozen beverages, after which he became lost and agitated trying to find his room. That’s when the crew members confronted him and stood on him with their full weight, the lawsuit alleges. The lawsuit says they restrained her for long periods of time, pressed her back and torso and restricted her breathing.
At the captain’s request, crew members gave him a sedative and sprayed him with pepper spray, the lawsuit says.
This treatment continued to cause respiratory failure, heart failure, and Virgil died.
Los Angeles County medical Examiner The death was declared murder. It states that Virgil died from the combined effects of mechanical asphyxiation, which occurs when a force or an object obstructs breathing; obesity; Heart enlargement and alcohol intoxication.
Crew members should not have served Virgil alcohol because he “displayed clear visible signs of intoxication” and were negligent in doing so, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit says the common law of the sea requires carriers like Royal Caribbean to “monitor and assist passengers who are likely to engage in behavior dangerous to themselves or others.”
The lawsuit says Royal Caribbean also failed to exercise its right to stop serving alcohol to Virgil to protect his life.
It states that the company’s ships are deliberately designed to ensure that there are stations serving alcohol “at every nook and cranny” and that the company does “as much as possible to encourage and facilitate alcohol consumption” onboard.
The lawsuit says medical personnel onboard lacked the proper education, licensing, experience and skills and that it failed to properly train crew members to assess when to stop caring for a passenger.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court on Friday miamiWhere the world’s second largest cruise company Royal Caribbean is headquartered.