A cruise ship guest, James A. Darling, 21, was arrested and charged with manslaughter following an ATV accident during a visit. Nassauthe capital of the Bahamas. Bail was set at $40,000, but Darling remains in the Bahamas at this time.

The tragic incident happened on Sunday, October 20, 2024. According to a GoFundMe Fundraiser arranged by Darling’s family, James and three friends went on a carnival cruise on October 19 for a “long-awaited boys’ getaway”.

The next day, while the ship was in Nassau, Darling was driving an ATV (although the family description calls it a UTV) with a friend, James Palmer, as a passenger. The vehicle rolled onto its side and eventually landed on Palmer’s neck, killing him.

Both ATVs and UTVs are recreational off-road vehicles. The biggest differences between them are that ATVs have bicycle-like seats, while UTVs have more traditional car-like seats. ATVs do not have seat belts, but UTVs do. Both types of vehicles can be rented in Nassau.

Conformable Tribuneauthorities allege Darling was driving the vehicle in a “dangerous manner” when the accident occurred. No further details about road conditions, speed or other factors have been released at this time.

The incident happened on Arawak Cay Road shortly after 11am. Arawak Cay is located just 2.5 miles from the cruise terminal.

It is unclear whether or not Darling and his friends were on a shore tour purchased through the cruise line. Many cruise lines, including Carnival, offer ATV and UTV tour experiences at various destinations, but travelers can also arrange such tours independently.

In Nassau, Carnival Cruise Line does not list any ATV tours available on its website, but individual tour offerings may vary by date.

While Darling’s family says the men were on a Carnival cruise, the exact ship is not being named. On October 20, when the incident occurred, two Carnival ships were in Nassau – Carnival sunrise and The conquest of the carnival.

Read also: Carnival Cruise Line is getting serious with drug-detecting dogs

Carnival sunrise departed Miami on October 19 for a 5-night Eastern Caribbean cruise, visiting Nassau, Amber Cove and Grand Turk. The conquest of the carnivalon the other hand, she also left Miami, but on October 18 for a 3-night Bahamas itinerary, visiting only Nassau.

Darling’s family is very clear that the men were “less than 24 hours after their trip” when the crash occurred on October 20, making it most likely that the men were passengers on board the 102,239 gross ton aircraft. Carnival sunrise.

Carnival Cruise Line has not issued a statement or commented on the incident or the resulting legal case.

A drug charge was also filed

In addition to the manslaughter charge, Darling was also charged with possession of dangerous drugs for transporting 9 grams (about a third of an ounce) of marijuana.

It should be noted that Carnival Cruise Line prohibits all passengers from bringing marijuana or CBD products on its shipsand in fact, it has has banned travelers trying to bring even medical CBD gummies on board.

However, there is no way the cruise line has any control over whether or not passengers purchase such items while in a port of call. Right now, marijuana laws in the Bahamas are still relatively confusing and constantly evolving, but recreational marijuana remains illegal.

Darling pleaded guilty to the drug possession charge and accepted probation on that charge, but the involuntary manslaughter charge will now move to Superior Court with a Voluntary Indictment (VBI). The next motion in the case is scheduled for March 20, 2025.