46 U.S.C. § 6301 — Investigation of marine casualties

Page 124 TITLE 46—SHIPPING § 6301 § 6301. Investigation of marine casualties The Secretary shall prescribe regulations for the immediate investigation of marine casual- ties under this part to decide, as closely as pos- sible— (1) the cause of the casualty, including the cause of any death; (2) whether an act of misconduct, incom- petence, negligence, unskillfulness, or willful violation of law committed by any individual licensed, certificated, or documented under part E of this subtitle has contributed to the cause of the casualty, or to a death involved in the casualty, so that appropriate remedial ac- tion under chapter 77 of this title may be taken; (3) whether an act of misconduct, incom- petence, negligence, unskillfulness, or willful violation of law committed by any person, in- cluding an officer, employee, or member of the Coast Guard, contributed to the cause of the casualty, or to a death involved in the cas- ualty; (4) whether there is evidence that an act sub- jecting the offender to a civil penalty under the laws of the United States has been com- mitted, so that appropriate action may be un- dertaken to collect the penalty; (5) whether there is evidence that a criminal act under the laws of the United States has been committed, so that the matter may be referred to appropriate authorities for pros- ecution; and (6) whether there is need for new laws or reg- ulations, or amendment or repeal of existing laws or regulations, to prevent the recurrence of the casualty. (Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 537.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source section (U.S. Code) 6301 .............................................. 46:239 Section 6301 requires the Secretary to prescribe regu- lations for the immediate investigation of marine cas- ualties in order to determine, as closely as possible, the cause of the casualty; whether the actions of individ- uals licensed, certificated, or documented have contrib- uted to the cause of the casualty, whether the action of an individual in the Coast Guard contributed to the cause of the casualty, whether there is evidence that an act subjecting the offender to civil or criminal penalty has been committed, and whether there is a need for new laws or to amend or repeal existing laws or regula- tions in order to prevent a recurrence of the casualty. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CONSTRUCTION Pub. L. 98–89, § 2(h), Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 599, pro- vided that: ‘‘Chapter 63 of title 46 (as enacted by sec- tion 1 of this Act) does not supersede section 304(a)(1)(E) of the Independent Safety Board Act of 1974 (49 App. U.S.C. 1903(a)(1)(E)) [see 49 U.S.C. 1131(a)(1)(E), (b)].’’ TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of authorities, functions, personnel, and assets of the Coast Guard, including the authorities and functions of the Secretary of Transportation relat- ing thereto, to the Department of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related references, see sections 468(b), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Secu- rity, and the Department of Homeland Security Reor- ganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6. § 6302. Public investigations Each investigation conducted under this chap- ter and regulations prescribed under this chap- ter shall be open to the public, except when evi- dence affecting the national security is to be re- ceived. (Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 537.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source section (U.S. Code) 6302 .............................................. .............................................. Section 6302 provides that each investigation con- ducted under this chapter shall be open to the public, except when evidence affecting the national security of the United States is to be received. § 6303. Rights of parties in interest In an investigation conducted under this chap- ter, the following shall be allowed to be rep- resented by counsel, to cross-examine witnesses, and to call witnesses: (1) an owner, (2) any holder of a license or certificate of registry, (3) any holder of a merchant mariner’s docu- ment, (4) any other person whose conduct is under investigation, and (5) any other party in interest. (Pub. L. 98–89, Aug. 26, 1983, 97 Stat. 537.) HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES Revised section Source section (U.S. Code) 6303 .............................................. 46:239(d) Section 6303 provides for the rights of parties in in- terest to an investigation by allowing them to be rep- resented by counsel, to cross examine witnesses, and to call witnesses. This section merely states the rights of a party in interest but does not necessarily determine who is to be considered a party in interest. Clause (4) states that these rights are to be afforded to ‘‘any other person whose conduct is under investigation’’ (empha- sis added). This implies that clauses (1) through (3) apply to individuals whose conduct is under investiga- tion. If any individual does not qualify for these rights under clauses (1) through (4), that individual can still be entitled to these rights under clause (5), if des- ignated as a party in interest. Since parties in interest are not clearly set out by statute, the Secretary has the authority to do this by regulation under section 6301. Thus the rights of these parties as presently pro- vided for in existing law have been retained. § 6304. Subpoena authority (a) In an investigation under this chapter, the attendance and testimony of witnesses, includ- ing parties in interest, and the production of any evidence may be compelled by subpoena. The subpoena authority granted by this section is coextensive with that of a district court of the United States, in civil matters, for the dis- trict in which the investigation is conducted. (b) When a person fails to obey a subpoena issued under this section, the district court of