United States v. Pena
United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
684 F.3d 1137 (2012)

- Written by Alex Ruskell, JD
Facts
Pena (defendant) was the MARPOL surveyor for the Island Express I. MARPOL was the common name for the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships. A MARPOL surveyor was charged with ensuring that a ship complied with all requirements regarding potential water pollution. During a surprise inspection of the ship while in port in Florida, the United States Coastguard discovered Pena was falsifying the ship’s MARPOL records. Pena was ultimately found guilty of violating MARPOL and sentenced to five years’ probation. Pena appealed, arguing that the United States did not have jurisdiction because the ship flew the flag of Panama and was thus under Panama’s jurisdiction.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Anderson, J.)
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