Sailor Acquitted of Intentionally Setting Fire to $1.2 Billion Navy Ship

An American sailor was acquitted of intentionally setting fire to a $1.2 billion navy ship, the U.S.S. Bonhomme Richard.

The suspect, Seaman Recruit Ryan Mays, was found not guilty of arson and the willful hazarding of a ship, said a spokesman for the U.S. 3rd Fleet, Commander Sean Robertson. The verdict followed a two-week court-martial where Navy prosecutors argued that Mays started the blaze due to disgruntlement with his work.

US Navy Ship Fire

On the other hand, defense lawyers said that lithium-ion batteries or a spark from a short on a forklift could have been responsible for the fire. Robertson said that the Navy is committed to upholding the principles of due process and a fair trial.

If the defendant had been found guilty, he would have faced life in prison. More than 60 people, including roughly 40 sailors, were treated for minor injuries during the fire that authorities fought for four days on the navy ship, which was docked for maintenance at its homeport at U.S. Naval Base San Diego, as per Reuters.

The now 21-year-old defendant deeply exhaled when the verdict was read, put both of his hands on the defense table, broke into tears, and hugged his supporters in the audience. Mays read a brief statement outside the courtroom building and declined to answer questions.

Mays said that the past two years have been the hardest he had to face in his entire life as a young man. He argued he lost time with friends, lost friends, lost time with his family, and lost his entire Navy career.

According to NPR, during the nine-day trial, prosecutors presented no physical evidence, while the defense chipped away at the credibility of a key witness, Seaman Kenji Velasco, who changed his account over time.

Vessel is Unprepared

A former Marine judge advocate, Gary Barthel, who represented Mays at a preliminary hearing, said undercutting Velasco's credibility was key. Barthel noted that the judge in the preliminary hearing recommended against a court-martial, but Vice Adm. Steve Koehler, former commander of the San Diego-based U.S. 3rd Fleet, had the final decision on the matter.

Barthel said that the ship's lower vehicle storage area became a junkyard due to the fire. He believes that throughout the entire process the Navy was attempting to clean up their mess by laying the blame on Mays.

Prosecutors argued during the trial that Mays was angry and vengeful about failing to become a Navy SEAL and being assigned to deck duty. They argued that this was what prompted him to ignite cardboard boxes on July 12, 2020, in the lower vehicle storage area on the Navy ship.

Capt. Jason Jones, the prosecutor, acknowledged in court a Navy report last year that concluded that the blaze was preventable and unacceptable. He added that there were lapses in training, coordination, communications, fire preparedness, equipment maintenance, and overall command and control.

Furthermore, being not fully functional, the crew failed to put out the flames as nearly all of the 807 fire extinguishers onboard were out of order and the sprinkler system was not working. Two hours passed before civilian firefighters were able to douse the blaze with water, which was by then, too late, because the fire had already burned the ship to a blackened hulk of scrap, the New York Times reported.