Underwater Assault over a reef in Kona

[Patwa]

Originally Posted by reefermadness

I doubt he "attempted" or intended to murder her.

If he really wanted her dead he could have made a better attempt than that.

He really should get an assault charge with the max sentence though.

indeed, there was no pre-meditation or intention to "kill" ... she caught them with their collective pants down. The response was coloured with rage and anger - 100% 'in the heat of the moment' case here. If fate had it that she was not able to retrieve her regulator, she would ultimately end up in a coma or dead.

the worse that could happen was that she could lose her life - thus, it's 100% attempted murder. Thankfully, she survived, but she was lucky - and had the experience to know what to do in that situation.

he may be charged with attempted murder, but that would be up to Hawaii 5-0 (hehehe) and/or the district attorney, but methinks if it does go to trial, it'll be manslaughter in the end.

Originally Posted by Slick Fork

I can't think of too many instances where taking away somebody's ability to breath is not attempted murder; what you're suggesting is like running somebody over with your car and saying "if I wanted them dead, I would've gone faster". Pretty sure that he'd be looking at either manslaughter or second degree murder charges.

+1

Originally Posted by reefermadness

It was careless, it was stupid, it was evil but attempted murder? No matter what we think or the courts it would only be what was in this guys mind at the time. Was his intent to end her life. My guess from the information i know is no.

weak attempt or not, his actions put her life in jeopardy. you don't have to be a trained and certified SCUBA diver to really fully understand what it means when someone rips your regulator off whilst 50ft underwater..........the point is that he took her air away, the ONLY means she has to sustain her life in that situation.

It's like me locking you in a dark room and sucking all the air out and leaving you to find the door so you can let air in....all because I took your picture.

attempted murder....110% ...but it'll be manslaughter in the end coz there was no pre-meditaton or intent, i say

[NickC]

"I hope they catch the idiot and charge him with attempted murder."
This "idiot" is a long time reef fish collector Jay Lovell,

There is quite a different tune going around about what she was actually doing there, odd how she was there filming and yet the clips only shows 30 seconds right when the altercation happened and not showing anything before hand leading up to why. This is an experienced collector who has worked in the industry for 35 years who would not just charge a random person and rip out the regulator for no reason. Perhaps the fact she works with the sea Sheppard could add some light onto the tactics she was using which were purposely not caught on tape and as to why Harassment charges are being looked at for her.

http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/2...caught-on-tape

[Reef Pilot]

Yup, a lot more to this story...
http://www.reef2rainforest.com/2014/05/19/10488/

[Slick Fork]

I read both articles; and while both do a good job of espousing the sustainability of Hawaii's aquarium fishery, neither of them come even close to justifying this guys actions. Neither article can provide a single specific instance of any anti-aquarium trade activist actually physically contacting or interfering with their job. "they get to close and I don't like to be filmed" doesn't cut it when it comes to provocation.

[Snappy]

Idiots!!
This is another reason why I like to dive with a spear gun.

[Reef Pilot]

Agree..., violence to counter violence is no justification. And yes, harassment is a form of violence.

[Slick Fork]

Depends on how you define harassment. I really didn't see any instances of harassment in the video. It's not like the environmentalists were sitting right on top of them, or releasing fish from traps. Just being near someone you don't like isn't harassment, being filmed in public doesn't mean you're being harassed.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by Slick Fork

Depends on how you define harassment. I really didn't see any instances of harassment in the video. It's not like the environmentalists were sitting right on top of them, or releasing fish from traps. Just being near someone you don't like isn't harassment, being filmed in public doesn't mean you're being harassed.

Well, apparently (and it is always a question of who to believe) the divers had a permit and were legally trying to do their job. But Sea Shepard were close enough to scare away the fish from their nets. I would call that interference and harassment.

Again, not justifying the reaction at all. But just saying there was more to the story than first reported. And you can bet the Sea Shepard bunch had it well planned, and knew what they were doing. That is their "job"....