Stone County Prosecuting Attorney Matt Selby and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced criminal charges against Ride the Ducks Branson employees Kenneth Scott McKee, Charles Baltzell, and Curtis Lanham on Friday in relation to the sinking of Stretch Boat No. 7 on Table Rock Lake on July 19, 2018, which killed 17 people.According to the probable cause statement, on the afternoon of July 19, 2018, Stretch Boat No. 7 entered Table Rock Lake during a severe thunderstorm warning, encountered severe weather and rough winds, took on water and eventually sunk, resulting in the deaths of 17 people. The probable cause statement alleges that Scott McKee, the captain of Stretch Boat No. 7, failed to exercise his duties as a licensed captain by entering the lake during a severe thunderstorm warning and failed to follow policies and training by not having passengers affix flotation devices as the boat took on water. The statement also alleges that Charles Baltzell, as Operations Supervisor, and Curtis Lanham, as General Manager, failed to communicate weather conditions and cease operations during a severe thunderstorm warning.[ READ PROBABLE CAUSE STATEMENT I READ DUCK BOATS COMPLAINT ]McKee was charged with 17 counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, a Class C Felony, five counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, a Class A felony, and seven counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, a Class D felony.Baltzell was charged with 17 counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, a Class C Felony.Related video: Sister of duck boat victim: ‘I called his phone 63 times’General Manager Curtis Lanham was charged with 17 counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, a Class C Felony.In total, 63 charges were filed against the three defendants.“We look forward to making our case in court,” Schmitt said in a statement. “The victims deserve justice.”The child-endangerment charges filed over deaths are the most serious, punishable by between 10 years and 30 years in prison. The endangerment charges involving children who survived the accident carry a sentence of up to seven years.“We are reviewing the charges, expect not guilty pleas will be entered and will continue vigorously represent Mr. McKee,” J.R. Hobbs and Marilyn B. Keller, who represent the captain, said in a statement.Attorneys for Baltzell and Lanham did not immediately respond to a telephone message seeking comment.Each manslaughter charge alleges that the men “recklessly caused” the death of a passenger. Missouri law calls for a prison sentence of between three years and 10 years for a conviction on that charge.Thirty-one people were aboard when the duck boat entered the lake. A storm came up suddenly and the waves swamped the boat before it could make it back to shore.Video and audio from the boat, recovered by divers, showed that the lake was calm when the boat entered the water. But the weather suddenly turned violent. Within minutes, the boat sank.Highway Patrol Sgt. Mark Green said in his affidavit that McKee failed to exercise his duties and responsibilities by going onto the lake with the boat, Stretch Boat 7, with a severe thunderstorm warning in effect. “He did not follow policy or training guidelines in that he failed to have passengers don personal floatation devices as Stretch Duck 7 took on water,” Green said.The wind speed at the time of the accident was more than 70 mph (113 kph), just short of hurricane force, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. Weather forecasts had warned of an impending storm with winds possibly exceeding 60 mph (97 kph).A U.S. Coast Guard certificate of inspection for the boat issued in February 2017 stated that it “shall not be operated waterborne” when winds exceed 35 mph and/or wave heights exceed 2 feet.Green’s affidavit said Baltzell’s failure to communicate with the duck boats about the weather and Lanham’s failure to cease their operation “had a contributing factor in the incident and subsequent fatalities.”In April 2020, the National Transportation Safety Board released the findings of its investigation into the tragedy.Included among the documents released by the NTSB was a letter dated April 15 in which Daniel Abel, vice admiral of the Coast Guard, said the Guard agreed with an NTSB recommendation to modify vehicles like the one that sank in Missouri.“The removal of canopies, side curtains, and associated framing from the DUKW fleet would improve emergency egress,” the report stated. The Coast Guard said it would issue a Marine Safety Information Bulletin, the first step in the process.The NTSB repeated criticism of the Coast Guard that it issued in November, saying the agency had ignored its recommendations to improve the boats since a duck boat accident in Arkansas killed 13 people in 1999. The board said it has repeatedly urged the Coast Guard to require that the boats be upgraded to stay afloat when flooded and to remove barriers to escape, such as canopies.The boat’s owner, Ripley Entertainment, has settled more than 30 lawsuits filed by survivors or relatives of those who died. The dead included nine members of one family from Indianapolis. Other victims were from Missouri, Illinois and Arkansas.The Associated Press contributed to this story.
BRANSON, Mo. —
Stone County Prosecuting Attorney Matt Selby and Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced criminal charges against Ride the Ducks Branson employees Kenneth Scott McKee, Charles Baltzell, and Curtis Lanham on Friday in relation to the sinking of Stretch Boat No. 7 on Table Rock Lake on July 19, 2018, which killed 17 people.
According to the probable cause statement, on the afternoon of July 19, 2018, Stretch Boat No. 7 entered Table Rock Lake during a severe thunderstorm warning, encountered severe weather and rough winds, took on water and eventually sunk, resulting in the deaths of 17 people.
The probable cause statement alleges that Scott McKee, the captain of Stretch Boat No. 7, failed to exercise his duties as a licensed captain by entering the lake during a severe thunderstorm warning and failed to follow policies and training by not having passengers affix flotation devices as the boat took on water.
The statement also alleges that Charles Baltzell, as Operations Supervisor, and Curtis Lanham, as General Manager, failed to communicate weather conditions and cease operations during a severe thunderstorm warning.
[ READ PROBABLE CAUSE STATEMENT I READ DUCK BOATS COMPLAINT ]
McKee was charged with 17 counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, a Class C Felony, five counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, a Class A felony, and seven counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child, a Class D felony.
Baltzell was charged with 17 counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, a Class C Felony.
Related video: Sister of duck boat victim: ‘I called his phone 63 times’
General Manager Curtis Lanham was charged with 17 counts of first-degree involuntary manslaughter, a Class C Felony.
In total, 63 charges were filed against the three defendants.
“We look forward to making our case in court,” Schmitt said in a statement. “The victims deserve justice.”
The child-endangerment charges filed over deaths are the most serious, punishable by between 10 years and 30 years in prison. The endangerment charges involving children who survived the accident carry a sentence of up to seven years.
“We are reviewing the charges, expect not guilty pleas will be entered and will continue vigorously represent Mr. McKee,” J.R. Hobbs and Marilyn B. Keller, who represent the captain, said in a statement.
Attorneys for Baltzell and Lanham did not immediately respond to a telephone message seeking comment.
Each manslaughter charge alleges that the men “recklessly caused” the death of a passenger. Missouri law calls for a prison sentence of between three years and 10 years for a conviction on that charge.
Thirty-one people were aboard when the duck boat entered the lake. A storm came up suddenly and the waves swamped the boat before it could make it back to shore.
Video and audio from the boat, recovered by divers, showed that the lake was calm when the boat entered the water. But the weather suddenly turned violent. Within minutes, the boat sank.
Highway Patrol Sgt. Mark Green said in his affidavit that McKee failed to exercise his duties and responsibilities by going onto the lake with the boat, Stretch Boat 7, with a severe thunderstorm warning in effect.
“He did not follow policy or training guidelines in that he failed to have passengers don personal floatation devices as Stretch Duck 7 took on water,” Green said.
The wind speed at the time of the accident was more than 70 mph (113 kph), just short of hurricane force, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. Weather forecasts had warned of an impending storm with winds possibly exceeding 60 mph (97 kph).
A U.S. Coast Guard certificate of inspection for the boat issued in February 2017 stated that it “shall not be operated waterborne” when winds exceed 35 mph and/or wave heights exceed 2 feet.
Green’s affidavit said Baltzell’s failure to communicate with the duck boats about the weather and Lanham’s failure to cease their operation “had a contributing factor in the incident and subsequent fatalities.”
In April 2020, the National Transportation Safety Board released the findings of its investigation into the tragedy.
Included among the documents released by the NTSB was a letter dated April 15 in which Daniel Abel, vice admiral of the Coast Guard, said the Guard agreed with an NTSB recommendation to modify vehicles like the one that sank in Missouri.
“The removal of canopies, side curtains, and associated framing from the DUKW fleet would improve emergency egress,” the report stated. The Coast Guard said it would issue a Marine Safety Information Bulletin, the first step in the process.
The NTSB repeated criticism of the Coast Guard that it issued in November, saying the agency had ignored its recommendations to improve the boats since a duck boat accident in Arkansas killed 13 people in 1999.
The board said it has repeatedly urged the Coast Guard to require that the boats be upgraded to stay afloat when flooded and to remove barriers to escape, such as canopies.
The boat’s owner, Ripley Entertainment, has settled more than 30 lawsuits filed by survivors or relatives of those who died. The dead included nine members of one family from Indianapolis. Other victims were from Missouri, Illinois and Arkansas.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
