Almost two years
After teenagers went missing in Atlantic, families grew estranged
ago, two South Florida teens went missing in the Atlantic. Today, hard feelings have intensified between the families of the two youths.
Before Tequesta teenagers Austin Stephanos and Perry Cohen disappeared at sea nearly two years ago, the 14-year-old boys had built a solid friendship along the waters near their homes.
Pals since they were 10, the kids often fished and boated together and used social media to stay in touch.
Their parents also got along well. Perry once took a trip to the Bahamas with Austin and his family, and there was talk of a jointfamily fishing foray to the islands.
But newly released records show the families’ good relations ended the moment Austin’s mom called Perry’s mom late on the afternoon of July 24, 2015, to report the kids were missing in the ocean and had not been heard from for about five hours.
There was “shock and dismay over learning that Austin’s family had betrayed a trust with regards to the limitations clearly placed on Perry’s authority to go offshore,” Perry’s stepdad recalled in a Feb. 22 meeting with investigators. Perry’s family also was in disbelief that Austin’s family had not yet called 911, he said.
The hard feelings have only intensified in the last week. Perry’s mom’s lawyer used the words “eye-opening” to describe a law enforcement report recommending that criminal child neglect charges be brought against Austin’s mother, Carly Black, for permitting the boat trip.
Yet state prosecutors declined to file any counts May 22, saying there was “insufficient proof” of a crime, according to the just-published report.
Less than three months after the disappearance, Perry’s parents asked Austin’s parents not to connect the boys’ photos “in any written or electronic format.” For public vigils marking the one-year anniversary of the tragedy, the families were separated. And a lawsuit was filed by Perry’s mom to have a judge referee what turned out to be a fruitless search for data on Austin’s recovered, saltwater-destroyed iPhone.
Still, the South Florida community that rallied behind the families and shed tears with them largely has viewed the boys’ legacy as being inextricably linked. Their almost certain deaths — no bodies were ever found — became the impetus for a new state law on boater safety that took effect Saturday.
Today, the teens’ biological and stepparents communicate only in legal proceedings, and Perry’s estate is considering a wrongful death lawsuit against Austin’s
mother, over negligence allegations.
Late last year, Black filed a petition in federal court seeking to limit her liability under maritime laws to $500 — the cost of the damaged vessel she owns, an 18-foot, single-engine 1978 SeaCraft.
A judge is expected to make a ruling on the request, which is opposed by Perry’s biological parents, Pamela and Phil Cohen.
Cohen accused Black of being clearly responsible for the boys’ deaths, in part because the boat was not kept in seaworthy condition and had no radio equipment on board. According to authorities, severe weather reached the area about 1:30 p.m., when the boat was offshore.
Records show Austin was the more experienced of the two boys on the water. He completed a boater education course in March 2012, nearly 21⁄2 years before Perry. Perry’s parents have said they permitted him to go fishing with Austin only on inland waters that day or any day, never off the coast.
Their boat initially was found about 67 nautical miles off the coast of Daytona Beach two days after they disappeared, but it drifted away because it wasn’t secured.
In early August 2015, a Sarasotabased flight school found life vests and a seat cushion near Savannah, Ga. A canine named Quincy alerted to the boys’ scents on the vests, according to the findings of a private search firm hired by the Cohen family.
Last month, officials released two reports that further fueled interest in the case.
First, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission detailed its findings of a forensic investigation of the vessel, found in March 2016 by a Norwegian supply vessel about 170 miles east of Bermuda. The conclusion of the boat motor manufacturer, Yamaha, and an independent marine consultant: The 2005 motor was working and stormy weather caused the teens’ boat to capsize after it left the Jupiter Inlet.
Then, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement released a report indicating that on Dec. 1 the agency had opened a criminal investigation concerning allegations of child neglect against Austin’s mother. Special Agent William V. Saladrigas wrote that he conducted interviews with Black and the other parents. The investigator also reviewed phone records and the examination of the boat, leading to his conclusion that Black had violated a state law against child neglect.
The key finding in Saladrigas’ report is that Black permitted the boys to “go offshore into the Atlantic Ocean, an inherently dangerous environment, in a minimally equipped … boat … without adult or parental supervision.”