William Brown (ship)

History
NameWilliam Brown
FateSank on 19 April 1841
General characteristics
Complement17 crew, 65 passengers

William Brown was an American ship that sank in 1841, taking with her 31 passengers. The survivors took to two boats, which later separated to increase their chances of being found. Nine crewmen and 32 passengers occupied the overloaded longboat. At the instigation of the first mate, who was placed in charge by the captain, some of the crew, Alexander Holmes among them, forced 12 of the adult male passengers out of the boat. In the case of United States v. Holmes, Holmes – the only crewman who could be found – was charged with murder and convicted of manslaughter for his actions.

The case has continued to be used in academic contexts to teach students and also spark debate in legal scholarship regarding the nature of "necessity" as a legal defense.[1][2][3][4]

  1. ^ Waldron, Jeremy (1 April 2010). Wacherhiauser, Kier B.; Schroeder, Nancy Lynn; Downey, Rachel A.; Carter, Molly E. (eds.). "A majority in the lifeboat" (PDF). Boston University Law Review. 90 (2). Boston, Massachusetts, United States: Boston University: 1043–1058.
  2. ^ Allen, Craig H. (19 November 2012). Keil, Brett; Munoz, Tony (eds.). "The Ship Masters Special Relationship to Passengers: Lessons from the 1841 William Brown Episode". The Maritime Executive. Plantation, Florida, United States: The Maritime Executive, LLC. Archived from the original on 5 May 2015.
  3. ^ Raban, Jonathan (26 April 2012), Silvers, Robert (ed.), "The sly survivor", The New York Review of Books, LIV (7), New York City, New York, United States: NYREV, Inc., ISSN 0028-7504
  4. ^ Yarbrough, Brad (1 March 2017). Blitzer, Barbara; Navales, Ethel; Roman, Joseph (eds.). "Considering the collective good" (PDF). Right of Way Magazine. 64 (2). Gardena, California, United States: International Right of Way Association: 9.