Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer Delivers Remarks on the Justice Department's Lawsuit Against the Owner and Operator of the Vessel that Destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge

Good morning. My name is Benjamin Mizer, and I am the Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General at the Justice Department. I am joined today by Chetan Patil, who is the Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Division’s Torts Branch. I am also joined by U.S. Attorney Erek Barron for the District of Maryland and representatives from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Navy, and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Today, the United States filed a civil claim in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland against the owner and operator of the Motor Vessel DALI, the container vessel that destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, resulting in six needless and heartbreaking deaths. The action seeks recovery of more than $100 million in damages and costs incurred by the United States in responding to the fatal disaster and reopening access to the Port of Baltimore.

In the early morning hours of March 26, the DALI left the Port of Baltimore bound for Sri Lanka. While navigating through the Fort McHenry Channel, the vessel lost power, regained power, and then lost power again before crashing into the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The whole country watched the horrifying video footage showing the bridge collapse and plunge into the water below. 

Six construction workers tragically lost their lives when the bridge collapsed. Our hearts go out to their families and loved ones for this senseless and wholly preventable loss.

In addition to the tragic loss of life, the destruction of the Francis Scott Key Bridge severely disrupted the economy of Baltimore and affected the entire nation. Not only did the bridge’s collapse sever a critical link in our highway infrastructure, but it also blocked the Fort McHenry Channel and brought to a standstill all maritime traffic in and out of the Port of Baltimore — one of the largest shipping hubs in the nation.

Just days after the disaster, President Biden pledged that the federal government would do whatever it took to get the Port of Baltimore up and running as soon as possible. What happened next was a heroic feat of governmental cooperation in the public interest. The United States led response efforts among more than 50 federal, state, and local agencies. The initial response focused on search and rescue efforts for those workers who were missing. But even as those efforts were ongoing, planning and operations commenced to remove more than 50,000 tons of steel, concrete, and asphalt from the channel and from the DALI itself. While these efforts were underway, temporary channels were also cleared to start relieving the bottleneck at the Port of Baltimore and mitigating some of the economic devastation caused by the DALI. The work was complex, costly, time-consuming — and at times dangerous. Thanks to these herculean efforts, on June 10, the United States reopened the Fort McHenry Channel, allowing commercial navigation once again to flow freely into and out of the Port of Baltimore.

I stand in awe of the remarkable work done by the U.S. Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers, Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving, and their contractors, as well as our State and local partners and countless others who supported those agencies.

As we outline in our claim, this catastrophe was entirely avoidable. We allege that the DALI’s owner and operator recklessly cut corners in ways that risked lives and the economic well-being of the nation. In particular, our claim alleges that the owner and operator of the DALI were well aware of vibration issues on the vessel that could cause a power outage. But instead of taking necessary precautions, they did the opposite. Out of negligence, mismanagement, and, at times, a desire to cut costs, they configured the ship’s electrical and mechanical systems in a way that prevented those systems from being able to quickly restore propulsion and steering after a power outage. As a result, when the DALI lost power, a cascading set of failures led to disaster.

The United States spent more $100 million responding to this disaster, to clear the channel, and to reopen the Port of Baltimore. Those costs should be borne by the ship’s owner and operator, not the American taxpayer. But that is not all. To try to keep this type of conduct from ever happening again, we are also seeking punitive damages. The Justice Department is committed to holding the DALI’s owner and operator responsible for the harm they caused and to deter them and others from taking reckless risks with American lives and infrastructure.

In bringing this civil action, I greatly appreciate the partnership we have with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, our cooperation with the State of Maryland, and the critical assistance we have received from many departments and agencies of the federal government. I am particularly proud of the work done by the Civil Division in putting together this comprehensive civil action, work that began within hours of when this tragedy occurred.

With that, I will turn it over to U.S. Attorney Barron.