PRESS RELEASE - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CRIME VICTIMS UNITED OF CALIFORNIA JOINS INTERNATIONAL CRUISE VICTIM ORGANIZATION'S REFORM EFFORTS

SAMMAMISH, WASHINGTON The International Cruise Victims Association, Inc. (ICV), a not for profit corporation formed by victims and families of victims of cruise crimes, announced today that Crime Victims United of California is uniting with ICV to push for passage of Senate Bill 1582. Crime Victims United of Californiauniquely uses education, legislative advocacy and political action to enhance public safety, promote effective crime-reduction measures and strengthen the rights of crime victims. 

Passengers need to be protected from crimes on cruise ships, said Harriet Salarno, Chair of Crime Victims United of California.  While cruise ships typically carry their own private security, there is no recourse to a bona fide law enforcement official in the event of an on-board crime.  On-board security works for the cruise line not for the passengers and not for the public.  There is an inherent conflict of interest between the public relations goals of the employer and the public safety requirements of the passenger, she added.  I applaud ICV for their efforts and look forward to working with them on the passage of this milestone legislation.

SB 1582, jointly authored by Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) and Senator Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) requires that an Ocean Ranger (a licensed marine engineer and certified peace officer) be present on all cruise ships sailing in California waters.  The long term goal is to create a seamless network of protection from one end of the Pacific Coast to the other through a series of agreements with other Pacific states (Alaska, Washington, Oregon and Hawaii). 

Congressional testimony, accounts in the press and industry statistics all suggest a serious public safety concern, and an industry response which has been too often wanting.  The presence of qualified, objective and independent law enforcement personnel on cruise ships addresses those concerns, Simitian said.  SB 1582 is also designed to enhance existing environmental protections.  California can be proud that we have some of the toughest anti-dumping laws in the nation to prevent cruise ships from dumping their waste along our coast. 

Kendall Carver, President of ICV welcomes Crime Victims United of California to the effort and acknowledged appreciation to the group for recognizing just how serious the issue of crimes at sea really is.  We look forward to working with this excellent group as we push for meaningful reform of the cruise line industry, Carver said.

For more information about the International Crime Victims Association, please visit www.internationalcruisevictims.org or write to info@internationalcruisevictims.org. For more information about Crime Victims United of California, please visit www.crimevictimsunited.com .

Contact Kendall Carver

Kcarver17@cox.net

Phone 602 852 5896