But Cousins, knowing LeCain had worked long hours during loading operations during the day, had told the second mate he could take his time in relieving him. Without intending to minimize the impact of Hazelwood's actions, however, one basic conclusion of this report is that the grounding at Bligh Reef represents much more than the error of a possibly drunken skipper: It was the result of the gradual degradation of oversight and safety practices that had been intended, 12 years before, to safeguard and backstop the inevitable mistakes of human beings. Court’s Rationale/Reasoning: On the first prong of the test, the court determined that since Exxon immediately cleaned its mess up, and settled with all the appropriate parties, that there was no malice on their part. Summary of the Exxon Valdez, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (2001). Cousins' duty hours and rest periods became an issue in subsequent investigations. Since the test did not come until after Exxon was originally decided, the award is vacated and remanded to recalculate. Automation typically reduces manual workload but increases mental workload." The third prong was measured by the criminal code for fines in this case, which was $500K for felonies, or for a misdemeanor resulting in a death, or $200K for a class A misdemeanor not resulting in a death. Hazelwood left the ship’s control (b/c he was drunk) to an exhausted 3rd mate, and left the ship on autopilot, which made the ship go faster. The evidence is hard to overlook, the court says. Traveling at approximately 12 knots, the Exxon Valdez crossed the traffic lanes' easterly boundary at 11:47 p.m. At 11:52 p.m. the command was given to place the ship's engine on "load program up"-a computer program that, over a span of 43 minutes, would increase engine speed from 55 RPM to sea speed full ahead at 78.7 RPM. At 11:30 p.m. Hazelwood informed the Valdez traffic center that he was turning the ship toward the east on a heading of 200 degrees and reducing speed to "wind my way through the ice" (engine logs, however, show the vessel's speed continued to increase). The worst case had occurred. The vessel came to rest facing roughly southwest, perched across its middle on a pinnacle of Bligh Reef. Radio officer Roberson, who commenced pre-voyage tests and checks in the radio room soon after arriving at the ship, later said no one in the group going ashore had expected the ship to be ready to leave as soon as they returned. Michele Galen & Vicky Cahan, Getting Ready for Exxon v. At 12:26 a.m., Hazelwood radioed the Valdez traffic center and reported his predicament to Bruce Blandford, a civilian employee of the Coast Guard who was on duty. At approximately 12:30 a.m., Chief Mate Kunkel used a computer program to determine that though stress on the vessel exceeded acceptable limits, the ship still had required stability. The following is a reprint of the text from pages 5-14. Exxon Valdez At 12:35 p.m., Hazelwood ordered the engine back on - and eventually to "full ahead" -- and began another series of rudder commands in an effort to free the vessel. Get compensated for. The skipper directed him to return to the control room to continue assessing the damage and to determine available options. Exxon Shipping Co. v. Baker, 554 U.S. 471 (2008), was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States. He went to the bridge to advise Hazelwood that the vessel should not go to sea or leave the area. 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