Zeebrugge

At the Central Criminal Court, Mr Justice Turner directed the jury to acquit all eight defendants, including the ship owners P&O European Ferries in the Zeebrugge ferry disaster trial because the prosecution failed to prove its case that they were guilty of manslaughter. The move came after several days of legal argument in the absence of the jury and is seen as having far-reaching implications in that it raises doubts about the viability of ever successfully prosecuting a company for corporate manslaughter. The only other corporate manslaughter case in English legal history, in 1965, also resulted in an acquittal.