The judge in the criminal trial of three men accused of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of 17 people in the Duck Boat Tragedy has dismissed all charges.
According to a report by Jason Wert of the Branson Tri-Lakes News, Stone County Judge Alan Blankenship issued his ruling Tuesday afternoon after delaying the initial hearing for his decision in March.
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmidt and Stone County Prosecutor Matt Selby had filed the charges against Kenneth Scott McKee, Curtis Lanham, and Charles Baltzell in connection with the July 2018 sinking of the Duck Boat during a storm on Table Rock Lake. 17 people died in that sinking.
The state filed charges after a federal courts ruled that Table Rock Lake is not a "navigable waterway which put it out of its jurisdiction.
Blakenship said the evidence submitted at the trial did not meet the intent element of the charges.
The complete recap of the ruling can be read on the Branson Tri-Lakes News Website.
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