Kendall L. Carver

Kendall Carver, in collaboration with a few other families, founded the International Cruise Victims Association, Inc., (ICV) 11 years ago, in response to his daughter’s disappearance while on a cruise ship and the cruise ship line’s attempt to cover up the disappearance. To date, ICV now has members in 35 countries. Mr. Carver provided support to and helped other family and friends of cruise ship victims publicize the events and worked to ensure that the offenders would be prosecuted. 

Mr. Carver worked with California Congresswoman Doris Matsui and Texas Congressman Ted Poe and obtained the support and cooperation of Massachusetts Senator John Kerry to allow the enactment of the Cruise Vessel Security and Safety Act of 2009, which President Barack Obama signed into law in 2010. In addition to providing rights to victims when crime occurs on a cruise ship, these crimes are now made public on a website maintained by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The laws also require that cruise ships be equipped with automatic man overboard systems when available to capture video images of overboard persons and/or send an alarm signal to the bridge for immediate response. 

Mr. Carver has testified five times before the House and Senate Committees, and has begun to seek ways to impact the International Maritime Organization for its influence over the cruise ship industry internationally. His impact on a very large number of potential crime victims has been and likely will continue to be significant. He, along with others that have joined ICV to support this effort, has done more for the rights of cruise ship victims than any other individual in the field of victim services.