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The guilty plea brought one of the maritime industry’s most closely watched criminal cases to a close before trial.

“When they occur in the middle of the ocean aboard a ship, the level of difficulty involved in prosecuting them probably increases exponentially.” — Ryan Melogy

The survivor watched the plea from the courtroom gallery and afterward turned to Ryan Melogy: “It’s over.”

Ryan Melogy speaks outside federal court following Merrone’s guilty plea and the survivor’s six-year pursuit of accountability.

“We were surprised,” Melogy said outside the courthouse. “I think the government had a very strong case … they were extraordinarily prepared.”

The guilty plea holds Merrone accountable and gives the survivor “some measure of closure,” according to the U.S. Attorney.

“My clients are all very happy … that he admitted what he did.” — Ryan Melogy

The survivor felt relieved and was looking forward to moving on after Merrone finally admitted his guilt, Ryan Melogy said.

Merrone admitted secretly giving the cadet an intoxicating substance and sexually assaulting her after she became incapacitated and unable to consent.

“It’s kind of been a struggle over the last six years. It just would never go away.” — Ryan Melogy

Merrone pleaded guilty to all five federal counts and faces up to life in prison for the assault of the USMMA cadet.

"A yacht can fly a flag of convenience and hide behind a wall of shell companies," wrote maritime injury attorney Ryan Melogy, "but after a crew member is sexually assaulted, a maritime lien automatically attaches to the vessel, waiting. The first time the vessel enters a U.S. port, it can be seized by the U.S. Marshals Service and held until the owner posts security or the claim is resolved. The ship itself is made to answer for what happened aboard."

"You're trapped," said maritime injury attorney Ryan Melogy. "You get assaulted in not only where you live, but where you're working... It's like there's nobody."

"This is a really difficult thing to do, to hold a captain accountable," said maritime injury attorney Ryan Melogy. "We hope this case serves as a warning to people who are thinking about doing this kind of thing; that people know that there is accountability."

Melogy, who represented Hope Hicks in the Midshipman-X case that helped precipitate passage of the Safer Seas Act, argues the new definition fails to capture the realities of abuse at sea. “The dramatic impact of psychological abuse in a shipboard environment is not well understood,” Melogy has said, noting that conduct dismissed as ordinary workplace conflict on shore can become cumulative, destabilizing, and even fatal at sea.

"My client endured a horrific betrayal while serving her country at sea — and still found the strength to graduate and earn her license," said attorney Ryan Melogy, a graduate of USMMA and a former merchant mariner. "She and the second survivor I represent have both showed extraordinary courage, patience, and determination in making these historic criminal charges possible."

Melogy, a former seafarer who represents mariners in sexual assault and harassment cases, said the criminal case against Merrone is about more than one captain. “It’s about a broken system consisting of US government agencies, maritime labour unions and commercial shipping companies that have worked cooperatively for decades to protect known sexual predators and silence their victims,” he said. “That system is finally failing.”

“I don’t see anything unusual procedurally about this particular case so far,” said maritime attorney Ryan Melogy, “though the fact that DSV Solutions promptly waived service strongly suggests there were pre-suit communications between the parties, likely including early settlement discussions that did not result in resolution.”

““Hope risked her career, her safety, and her privacy to come forward — and now, as a direct result of her bravery, the Navy is making sweeping changes to how it protects mariners. That’s powerful,” said Ryan Melogy, an attorney for the Justice4Mariners Law Firm.

“Decades of documented moral failures by leaders of the U.S. Coast Guard have made it clear to Congress, the public, and survivors that the agency is unwilling to take steps needed to protect Coast Guard Academy cadets from systemic sexual abuse,” said attorney Ryan Melogy. “It has become obvious that only outside pressure can lead to change.”

“Maritime lawyer J. Ryan Melogy says of the court's decision and settlement that it "will inevitably force APL and other owners and operators of American-flag vessels to take new and aggressive measures to prevent the sexual abuse of its crew members. There is nothing that motivates shipping companies like money," Melogy says.”

“Crowley has settled a second sex trafficking lawsuit filed against it relating to an alleged predatory supervisor at the company’s El Salvador office. As with the first resolution, the company says it continues to deny the allegations.”

"They are being flooded with reports," said Ryan Melogy, a maritime lawyer who has represented harassment victims including Hicks

Ryan Melogy, a lawyer who represented the third engineer in the Coast Guard case, pointed out that alleged behaviour that led to the accusation of misconduct happened before the alleged battery of his client.

The aggrieved third engineer’s attorney, Ryan Melogy of Justice4Mariners, criticizes the CMA CGM subsidiary for not removing the defendant from the ship earlier. "This should have happened when the first incidents with the chief engineer were investigated."

“Today marks a historic turning point in addressing the epidemic of sexual violence at the Coast Guard Academy,” said Ryan Melogy

After two judges allowed litigation to move forward, out-of-court settlement closes the book on rape case

Ryan Melogy’s Speech to the Marine Pollution and Maritime Crimes Committee of the MLAUS at Blank Rome, LLP, New York City, NY

Ryan Melogy’s client Elsie Dominguez continues to fight for justice as the U.S. government continues its fight to deny justice to Elsie and the many other victims of Military Sealift Command’s unsafe vessels.

. “However, a plaintiff’s attorney representing victims of maritime harassment argues that the existing legal patchwork provides mariners with little or no effective protection, and getting the Coast Guard involved would help. “Harassment is an enormous problem in the maritime industry and much more widespread than sexual misconduct. Mariners cannot depend on existing laws or company policies to protect them from harassment and bullying,” said attorney Ryan Melogy. “AWO wants to roll back protections for mariners.”