Family members of two Trinidadian men killed in a U.S. missile strike have filed a lawsuit against the United States government, alleging wrongful death and extrajudicial killing in what lawyers describe as an unlawful attack on a civilian vessel.
The victims, Chad Joseph, 26, and Rishi Samaroo, 41, were killed in October when a civilian boat was struck by a U.S. missile. The attack was one of 36 missile strikes reportedly carried out by the Trump administration against civilian boats operating in the Caribbean and Pacific Ocean.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of the victims’ families by Lenore Burnley, Joseph’s mother, and Sallycar Korasingh, Samaroo’s sister. The women are representing surviving relatives of both men.
According to court filings, the families are bringing claims under two U.S. federal statutes: the Death on the High Seas Act, which allows relatives to sue for deaths occurring in international waters, and the Alien Tort Statute, which permits foreign nationals to pursue civil action in U.S. courts for violations of internationally recognised human rights.
In the complaint, attorneys from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Center for Constitutional Rights, Professor Jonathan Hafetz of Seton Hall Law School, and the ACLU of Massachusetts argue that the missile strikes were “manifestly unlawful.”
The legal team contends that the United States was not engaged in an armed conflict at the time of the attack, contrary to claims made by the U.S. government. They further argue that even if a state of armed conflict existed, the strikes would still violate international humanitarian law, which strictly prohibits the indiscriminate or deliberate use of lethal force against civilians and civilian vessels.
The lawsuit accuses the U.S. government of carrying out unlawful killings without due process and seeks accountability for what the families describe as an illegal and unjustified use of military force.
The case adds to growing international scrutiny over U.S. military operations beyond declared war zones and raises serious questions about civilian protections under international law.
