Diver assaults another diver underwater

[Dragon Down]

what is "sea sheppard"? really!! I heard this term first time in this thread

I think this is the best way to explain...
Are We BAD ASSES?! - Video Clip | South Park Studios

 

[Scubadude_LA]

Let's not down play also that this is Hawaii, and in Hawaii there is a long history of natives showing hostility to out-siders/tourists, they even have an name for them I think its Haoles. Go surf a local surf hangout and watch out for the elbows to the face and a pretty open hostility toward you.

I've seen at least one great fist fight in SoCal over surfing rights! Much better than UFC. It's a global issue.

Would love to know the real story behind all of this if it ever surfaces.

 

[nimoh]

Depending on your political views, they're either a conservation society or a terrorist organization. Apparently the woman who got assaulted in this case was a member ...

Sea Shepherd Diver Attacked While Documenting Aquarium Trade Wildlife Trafficking - Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

...and the guy attacking her was only trying to snuff out a terrorist

 

[LeadTurn_SD]

.... Prosecuting Attorney Mitch Roth said Monday he was aware of the incident, which has not yet been submitted to his office for prosecution. He also responded to questions about the potential charges the alleged attacker could face. Assault, under state law, requires someone to physically injure another person, he said...

I know Mitch personally. I truly hope he was misquoted, he is a better attorney than that....

If I walked up to someone on the street and slapped them, shoved them, or in anyway touched their person in an overtly aggressive manner you can be sure I could face criminal charges if the act was caught on video and the other person filed charges, whether or not I had been "provoked", and whether or not my attack caused injury.

I'm one of the "old time" divers who had "harassment" training.... in my case, I had my air turned off, mask ripped off, reg pulled from my mouth, several times during the course of the "hazing" dive. It was all "fun & games" in a training setting.

It would not be "fun & games" in real life. If someone did that to me or a dive buddy, I would consider it an attack with murderous intent, and act accordingly.

Unless the entire thing was a "setup" like a reality TV show, it is an assault, and should be prosecuted.

If the victim was indeed harassing the fish collector, that should also be prosecuted...

Pulling a reg from another diver's mouth outside of a training scenario is similar to having an argument with someone on a city sidewalk, and then shoving that person off the sidewalk into oncoming traffic. The shove does not cause injury, but the oncoming cars could cause serious injury or death, and you knew that as you shoved the person.

Sad situation.

Best wishes.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

From the first linked article:

She said she has not yet been cited. Another West Hawaii dive instructor was cited for harassing a fisherman in 2011, after she reported he was allegedly anchoring his boat on coral off the Kohala coast. That diver also provided photos of the incident. The charges against her were later withdrawn at court. - See more at: Fish collecting ban advocate attacked while filming reef | West Hawaii Today

Intending to cite is not citing, and apparently the state agency will cite anyone about whom they receive a complaint. When it winds up in court and the prosecutor sees there's not a snowball's chance in Hell that the alleged behavior constitutes "harassment of a fisherman" the charges are dropped. Cute behavior - I'd like to see a malicious prosecution/abuse of process counterclaim against the fisherman and whatever tin-badge moron wrote up such a citation, but that's just me.

I also like the quote in the article about how OC divers many feet away "affected the behavior" of the fish these two were trying to collect. Nothing other than their own constant stream of OC bubbles would have been within the notice of those tiny little fish brains. If they were collecting on CCR and had to deal with a bunch of OC divers anywhere nearby, I'd probably side with the collectors on the harassment issue.

 

[shoredivr]

Really, Dr Lecter, stop being so reasonable and engage in speculation will ya? ;-)

 

[Trace Malinowski]

...and the guy attacking her was only trying to snuff out a terrorist

That is kind of funny. I'm sure a talented attorney could win that argument.

I can foresee a future court case in which a panicked out of air diver gets charged with reckless endangerment or assault for taking a regulator in an emergency stemming from this too.

 

[Diver0001]

what is "sea sheppard"? really!! I heard this term first time in this thread

Save the whale types who routinely cause (near) accidents with whaling ships in open seas.

It plays well in the controversy-hungry media but does nothing to save whales. It's kind of akin to bringing attention to your cause by self-immolation.

R..

 

[EdwardHall]

Personally could not care who did what. It's just good to see a screwed up animal activist take one!

It's unfortunate that she got EXACTLY WHAT SHE WANTED!

 

[Diver0001]

On another topic.... What is the legality of the fish collecting? Is "illegal" fish collecting a big problem in Hawaii?

R..