In New Ruling, Federal Judge Says Former Maersk Captain Mark Stinziano Sexually Assaulted Merchant Marine Academy Deck Cadet
via Tradewinds
11 March 2025 13:20 GMT
Advocate Ryan Melogy describes ruling as advance for safety at sea
A US federal judge has extended the suspension of a former AP Moller-Maersk officer accused of abusive sexual contact in a decade-old case but stopped short of rescinding the seafarer’s licence.
The decision against Captain Mark Stinziano, who worked as a chief mate on a container ship in the Danish shipping giant’s Maersk Line Ltd (MLL) fleet, comes more than a year after the US Coast Guard’s vice commandant ordered the agency’s in-house legal system to have another look at the case.
The latest ruling by Coast Guard administrative law judge George Jordan extended Stinziano’s suspension to 12 months, up from the original four-month suspension by a prior judge, on a finding that he committed abusive sexual contact. Stinziano, whose lawyer could not be reached for this story, has denied the allegations against him.
The case centres on allegations that Stinziano sexually harassed a deck cadet onboard the 4,658-teu container ship Maersk Idaho (built 2000) in 2014 and 2015 by groping his buttocks and grabbing him from behind while simulating sex acts without his consent. . .