Former Maersk Captain Facing Coast Guard Sexual Harassment Charges Hit With 2nd Complaint Alleging He Sexually Harassed USMMA Cadet Aboard a Crowley Vessel in 2017
New York, NY
By: MLAA
Things have gone from very bad to even worse for Captain Joseph R. McCann.
In November of 2022 the U.S. Coast Guard filed Suspension & Revocation charges against Captain McCann’s license and merchant mariner credential (MMC) related to allegations that McCann sexually harassed Chief Cook Ashley Codrington aboard the M/V Maersk Michigan in the spring of 2021.
The Codrington case is still ongoing, and a trial is set for May 2023.
According to the U.S. Coast Guard, in December of 2022 while Coast Guard prosecutors were preparing for the administrative Suspension & Revocation (S&R) proceeding against McCann’s license and MMC in the Codrington case, the Coast Guard uncovered evidence that McCann sexually harassed another woman on a different ship.
According to the Coast Guard, in 2017, while serving as Chief Mate aboard a vessel operated by Crowley Maritime Corporation, McCann was fired by Crowley after an internal company investigation found that then Chief Mate McCann had sexually harassed a cadet from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy who was serving under McCann aboard the vessel.
According to court documents, the Coast Guard sought information from Crowley regarding the earlier incident, and Crowley confirmed McCann’s “employment had been terminated based on his sexually harassing behavior in violation of the company's policies.”
The Coast Guard also says it interviewed potential witnesses who had been aboard the Crowley-operated vessel, or who had knowledge of the alleged sexually harassing behavior towards the female cadet, and those persons also confirmed that McCann had sexually harassed the Kings Point Deck Cadet.
The Coast Guard then filed a 2nd S&R complaint against McCann, which included two counts. The first count alleges McCann violated 46 U.S.C 7704a(a), which is a new statute passed as part of the “Safer Seas Act, by committing acts of “sexual harassment.”
The second count alleges McCann committed official “Misconduct” by violating Crowley’s company policy by his acts of sexual harassment against the female Cadet.
The Coast Guard served the 2nd Complaint on McCann’s attorney on March 17, 2023.
The Coast Guard’s 2nd Complaint against McCann may be the first Coast Guard S&R complaint to charge a mariner under the new Safer Seas Act provisions that define Sexual Harassment or Sexual Assault for the purposes of S&R hearings.
The 2nd Complaint against McCann alleges that in the summer of 2017, while serving as Chief Mate of the Crowley-operated vessel, McCann “sent inappropriate messages to the Deck Cadet via social media expressing an unwelcome desire for an intimate relationship.”
The 2nd Complaint also alleges that McCann “made unwelcome sexual advances or verbal conduct of a sexual nature towards the Deck Cadet by sending inappropriate messages via social media expressing a desire for an intimate relationship, which created an intimidating and hostile work environment for the Deck Cadet.”
In a separate response to McCann’s failed Motion to Dismiss the 2nd Complaint, the Coast Guard prosecutors also hinted that McCann may have engaged in even more egregious conduct towards the Cadet than what is described in the initial complaint. The Coast Guard wrote that they believe McCann’s behavior towards the Deck Cadet was “misconduct constituting sexual molestation or perversion,” and that there may be “aggravating factors.”
Captain Joseph R. McCann is a member of the American Maritime Officers labor union, which has seen a string of its members charged with shipboard sexual misconduct over the past year, including Matthew J. Thomas, Aaron Jandreau, and accused serial rapist Captain John Merrone.
Crowley Maritime Corporation has been hit with several sexual assault scandals in recent months, including two ongoing federal sex trafficking lawsuits filed against the company by former female employees.
Crowley was also the employer of McCann, Thomas, and Jandreau when the mariners committed acts of alleged sexual harassment or assault aboard Crowley owned or operated vessels.
In his response to both of the U.S. Coast Guard’s S&R Complaints filed against him, Captain McCann has, through his attorneys, denied all of the allegations.
Captain McCann is represented by attorney Brian McEwing of New Jersey law firm Reeves McEwing.
Ashley Codrington is represented by attorney J. Ryan Melogy of New York law firm Maritime Legal Solutions, PLLC.
The U.S. Coast Guard is represented by LCDR Orlando Hernandez and Jennifer Mehaffey, Esq. of the Coast Guard’s Suspension & Revocation NCOE.