"Missing honeymooner's" wife and parents divorce over $1 million settlement
Solving the case of what befell "missing honeymooner" George Smith is starting to seem about as likely as OJ finding the "real killer" of Nicole and Ron. In the latest chapter of the bizarre case, Jennifer Hagel-Smith, George's wife, and George's parents, have fallen out subsequent to her acceptance of a $1 million settlement from Royal Caribbean.
George's parents and sister were reported by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel to consider Jennifer's deal a "sell out" that they plan to challenge in court, while Jennifer plans to set aside $25,000 of the million for a fund in her husband's memory. The parents' attorney, a fellow named Brett Rivkind, whose firm's Web site describes itself as "cruise personal injury lawyers," has made a career of suing cruise lines. Since the deal remains subject to a judge's approval, who knows whether the deal will take place.
The presumption is that George fell or was pushed overboard in July 2005 during his honeymoon cruise aboard Brilliance of the Seas after a late night of drinking. New spouse Jennifer, meanwhile, was found sleeping in a public hallway elsewhere on the ship.
When Royal Caribbean was told the following morning the George could be missing, they promptly involved the FBI as well as local Turkish authorities, and a nearby vacationing FBI agent came onboard to assist. Those facts seem accepted by everyone.
Our bottom line? Royal Caribbean seems to bear no fault for George's death through any action, or lack of action, and followed both the letter and the spirit of the law in working with authorities to help unravel the truth. Royal Caribbean has aggressively defended its actions, so we were surprised they offered this settlement, although we're sure at this point they would prefer for the story to finally go away.
We'd like to know what really happened, although unraveling that seems less likely all the time
George's parents and sister were reported by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel to consider Jennifer's deal a "sell out" that they plan to challenge in court, while Jennifer plans to set aside $25,000 of the million for a fund in her husband's memory. The parents' attorney, a fellow named Brett Rivkind, whose firm's Web site describes itself as "cruise personal injury lawyers," has made a career of suing cruise lines. Since the deal remains subject to a judge's approval, who knows whether the deal will take place.
The presumption is that George fell or was pushed overboard in July 2005 during his honeymoon cruise aboard Brilliance of the Seas after a late night of drinking. New spouse Jennifer, meanwhile, was found sleeping in a public hallway elsewhere on the ship.
When Royal Caribbean was told the following morning the George could be missing, they promptly involved the FBI as well as local Turkish authorities, and a nearby vacationing FBI agent came onboard to assist. Those facts seem accepted by everyone.
Our bottom line? Royal Caribbean seems to bear no fault for George's death through any action, or lack of action, and followed both the letter and the spirit of the law in working with authorities to help unravel the truth. Royal Caribbean has aggressively defended its actions, so we were surprised they offered this settlement, although we're sure at this point they would prefer for the story to finally go away.
We'd like to know what really happened, although unraveling that seems less likely all the time
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