In re Phil Steinle

835 F. Supp. 2d 437, 2011 WL 6153122, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 142545
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Ohio
DecidedDecember 12, 2011
DocketCase No. 3:08 CV 2934
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 835 F. Supp. 2d 437 (In re Phil Steinle) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Ohio primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Phil Steinle, 835 F. Supp. 2d 437, 2011 WL 6153122, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 142545 (N.D. Ohio 2011).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

KATZ, District Judge.

This matter derives from the June 15, 2008 collision between two recreational vessels in Sandusky Bay, Lake Erie. The collision, which occurred between the forty-one foot M/V Secret Formula (“the Secret Formula”), and the smaller, twenty-foot Sea Ray vessel, (“the Sea Ray”), resulted in the death of one passenger and personal injuries to others. In the aftermath of the collision, six separate lawsuits were filed, all of which were consolidated under the above-captioned matter. Included among the consolidated cases are the two actions sub judice: Miller v. United States, No. 10-cv-788, and Franklin v. United States, No. 10-cv-1199.

Currently pending before the Court is Defendants United States’ and United States Coast Guard’s (collectively, “the Government”) Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss the Miller Complaint and the Franklin Complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. (Doc. 89). Also pending is the Government’s Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(f) motion to strike Plaintiff Ashley Franklin’s Supplemental Authority List, (Doc. 162), Plaintiff Ashley Franklin’s request to file a revised Supplemental Authority List, (Doc. 163), and Plaintiffs’ requests for oral argument. (Doc. 159; Doc. 160).

For the reasons stated herein, the Government’s motion to dismiss is granted, the Government’s motion to strike is granted, Plaintiff Ashley Franklin’s request for leave to file a revised Supplemental Authority List is denied, and Plaintiffs’ requests for oral argument are denied.1

I. Background

On the night of June 14, 2008, Coast Guard Petty Officers Nicholas Hupp, Eric Heyob, and Gregory Penny were on board the Coast Guard patrol Boat CG 25725 in Sandusky Bay. The boat was under the command of Hupp, the coxswain, and was crewed by Heyob and Penny.

Shortly before midnight, the crew observed the Secret Formula exiting San-dusky Bay’s Neuman Dock area without displaying all of the nighttime navigation lights that are mandatory under the Coast Guard’s Inland Navigation Rules (“Inland Navigation Rules,” or “Rules”). While the Secret Formula displayed red and green side lights, it did not display the required [440]*440225-degree forward-facing white masthead light, or the 135-degree rear-facing white stern light. Consequently, the Coast Guard crew ordered the Secret Formula back to the dock for inspection. Petty Officer Heyob — a recently credentialed Boarding Officer — assumed the Boarding Officer role and led the inspection. Penny assisted Heyob as a boarding team member, and Hupp remained on the Coast Guard vessel and took no part in the inspection.

Upon boarding the Secret Formula, Heyob and Penny confirmed that neither the masthead nor the stern lights were illuminated. Heyob, in his role as Boarding Officer, informed the Secret Formula’s owner, Phil Steinle, that he must find a replacement light or terminate his trip. Steinle then produced a battery powered, 360-degree “all-round” type white masthead light that was mounted on a two-to-three foot pole. Steinle also informed Heyob that he planned only to make the short trip back to the Venetian Marina, located approximately 2.25 miles away.

In determining how to handle the situation described above, Heyob testified that he drew on his Boarding Officer training, his knowledge of the Inland Navigation Rules, and on guidance provided by the Coast Guard’s Boarding Officer Job Aid Kit (“BOJAK”) manual. (Doc. 89-2). Notably, for a vessel of the Secret Formula’s length, (approximately 41 feet), Inland Navigation Rule 23 requires a forward-facing 225-degree masthead light, and a rear-facing 135-degree stern light. The Rules do not provide for a 360-degree “all-round” type light. Despite this, Heyob concluded that the 360-degree light would be a sufficient temporary correction so long as Steinle displayed the light and headed directly to the Venetian Marina. Heyob informed Steinle of these instructions, and Steinle responded that he did not have any questions. Heyob then provided Steinle with the appropriate paperwork indicating the required corrective actions, ended the inspection, and returned with Penny to the Coast Guard boat shortly after midnight. None of the Coast Guardsmen took any further action to verify that Steinle complied with Heyob’s instructions.

The Secret Formula subsequently departed the Neuman Dock area. While en route to the Venetian Marina it collided with Kevin Lake’s Sea Ray. Plaintiff Ashley Franklin, a passenger on the Sea Ray, sustained serious injuries as a result of the collision. Benjamin Miller, also a passenger on the Sea Ray, was thrown overboard and died.

On April 15, 2010, decedent Benjamin Miller’s parents sued the Government for negligence pursuant to the Suits in Admiralty Act, 46 U.S.C. § 30901 et seq. (“SAA”). See No. 10-ev-788. On May 27, 2010, Ashley Franklin filed a substantially identical Complaint, see No. 10-cv-1199,2 and Plaintiffs’ actions were consolidated with several other lawsuits into the instant matter. The Government filed a Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss the Millers’ Complaint and Franklin’s Complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction on April 4, 2011.

II. Standard of Review: Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) Motion to Dismiss

Generally, a Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss for lack of subject mat[441]*441ter jurisdiction falls into one of two categories: facial attacks and factual attacks. United States v. Ritchie, 15 F.8d 592, 598 (6th Cir.1994) cert. denied, 513 U.S. 868, 115 S.Ct. 188, 130 L.Ed.2d 121 (1994); see also Wenz v. Rossford Ohio Transp. Improvement Dist., 392 F.Supp.2d 931, 934 (N.D.Ohio 2005). A facial attack challenges the sufficiency of the pleading itself, and requires the Court to take all of the material allegations in the complaint as true and construe them in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Ritchie, 15 F.3d at 598 (citing Scheuer v. Rhodes, 416 U.S. 232, 235-37, 94 S.Ct. 1683, 40 L.Ed.2d 90 (1974)). In contrast, a factual attack challenges the factual existence of subject matter jurisdiction, Ohio Hosp. Ass’n v. Shalala, 978 F.Supp. 735, 739 (N.D.Ohio 1997), and requires a court to “weigh the conflicting evidence to arrive at the factual predicate that subject-matter [jurisdiction] does or does not exist.” Gentek Bldg. Prods, v. Sherwin-Williams Co., 491 F.3d 320, 330 (6th Cir.2007). Both the Plaintiffs and the Government agree that the instant motion to dismiss involves a factual attack.

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835 F. Supp. 2d 437, 2011 WL 6153122, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 142545, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-phil-steinle-ohnd-2011.