Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I strongly support H.R. 603, a bill to clarify the application of the Death on the High Seas Act. H.R. 603 addresses a gross inequity which was brought to our attention by the family members of the victims of TWA flight 800, which is created when the Death on the High Seas Act is applied to aviation accidents. If a plane crashes into the ocean more than 3 miles from land, as did TWA flight 800, the Death on the High Seas Act applies. This act denies families the ability to win noneconomic damages in a lawsuit. This means that a family member could not be compensated, for example, for the loss of companionship of a loved one; parents could not be compensated for the loss of their teenaged sons and daughters; sons and daughters could not be compensated for the loss of their elderly parents. The effect of applying the Death on the High Seas Act to aviation accidents is to treat families differently depending on whether the loved ones die in an aircraft that crashed into the ocean or one that crashed on land. This is obviously unfair.”