{"id":1586,"date":"2026-06-09T21:32:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T21:32:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586"},"modified":"2026-06-09T21:32:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T21:32:15","slug":"victims-of-video-voyeur-on-ship-cant-be-forced-into-arbitration-judge-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586","title":{"rendered":"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules"},"content":{"rendered":"<article><!-- --><!-- --><!-- WPS-5038 -- removed the script from WPS and added the placeholder for trinity player --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- CONTENT --><!--[--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>In April, possible victims of a cruise ship crew member who planted a hidden camera to watch a young girl undress in her cabin obtained a significant legal victory in Fort Lauderdale federal court.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1584\">Gala raises $2 million for Miami-Dade\u2019s homeless community<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>That ruling has now been upheld in the long, ongoing judicial process, giving them a second win.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>On April 22, U.S. Magistrate Judge Detra Shaw-Wilder ruled against Miami-based Royal Caribbean\u2019s attempt to require that all potential victims go through individual arbitration with the cruise line, generally a secretive process and often favored by corporations.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>That decision, the Miami Herald first reported then, removed one of the biggest obstacles each plaintiff or guest was facing in holding the company accountable and receiving damages depending on how far the case advances.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Miami Federal Judge Darrin Gayles, in charge of the overall case, had requested Shaw-Wilder make a recommendation on that motion. He would then accept, reject or modify it.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>On May 26, he accepted her ruling completely. After reviewing Royal Caribbean\u2019s arguments and the magistrate\u2019s conclusions, he wrote that he \u201cagrees with Judge Shaw-Wilder\u2019s well-reasoned findings and recommendation,\u201d according to a court document.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The original class-action lawsuit was filed Oct. 15, 2024, in Miami federal court against Royal Caribbean Cruises and Arvin Mirasol, a former room attendant. The plaintiff, referred to as Jane Doe in the complaint and represented by the Miami firm Lipcon, Margulies &amp; Winkleman, was a passenger aboard Symphony of the Seas around Feb. 25, 2024.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Mirasol regularly cleaned passenger rooms, restocked towels and changed sheets on Royal Caribbean\u2019s Symphony of the Seas, a vessel that carries 5,518 passengers and 2,200 crew members. But that wasn\u2019t all he did, according to court filings and the criminal complaint from the Broward County Sheriff\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Searching his electronic equipment including a USB stick device, law enforcement agents found \u201cseveral videos of naked females undressing in their bathrooms.\u201d One girl seemed to be 10 years old, they said. He\u2019d planted small, secret cameras in passengers\u2019 rooms.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Mirasol was sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty in Fort Lauderdale federal court.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The civil class action suit initially claimed there could be up to 960 passengers who are victims. The complaint defines the class as passengers aboard Symphony of the Seas between Dec. 1, 2023, and Feb. 26, 2024, who stayed in cabins serviced by Mirasol. That was the period when Royal Caribbean employed Mirasol on Symphony of the Seas.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1582\">Gallon\u2019s resignation opens new spot, election for Miami-Dade school board<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Because of the sexual nature of the crimes and the ages of victims, the law firms and the Miami Herald are not identifying any of the passengers.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>On Tuesday, Royal Caribbean did not immediately respond to Judge Gayles\u2019 new ruling. The company has previously declined to comment on ongoing litigation or investigations in this case and others. In court, it continues to appeal the overall case.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Early on, Royal Caribbean tried to dismiss the suit, saying any passenger with an emotional or mental trauma complaint not involving physical contact or physical injury \u2014 like video voyeurism \u2014 must go through individual arbitration. The company says that\u2019s because passengers agreed to that when buying their cruise ship tickets and signing the required contract.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>They said there would be exceptions if physical contact or sexual assault occurred, but they denied that\u2019s what happened here.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The cruise line also claims the Federal Arbitration Act and subsequent court cases support its argument. The firm Cozen O\u2019Connor is representing RCL.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The plaintiffs\u2019 lawyers countered that Royal Caribbean was greatly downplaying the injuries the victims suffered. They argue, citing experts, that sexual assault and sexual harassment don\u2019t require physical contact.<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>The victims\u2019 attorneys, from Lipcon, Margulies &amp; Winkleman P. A and the Moskowitz Law Firm, also cited federal laws, including a maritime law and the Ending Forced Arbitration Act, which the U.S. Congress enacted in 2022 that bars employers from requiring arbitration for disputes related to sexual assault or harassment. Its full name is the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act and is often referred to as the EFAA.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>In April, U.S. Magistrate Shaw-Wilder ruled that the plaintiffs were right on all those questions.<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>Subsequently, in his ruling in late May, Gayles wrote that \u201cIn her Report, Judge Shaw-Wilder found that both the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act &#8230; preclude the Court from enforcing the arbitration provision in Royal Caribbean\u2019s ticket contract based on Plaintiffs\u2019 claims.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>He noted that \u201cRoyal Caribbean raises several objections.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--[--><\/p>\n<p>But he decided that \u201cJudge Shaw-Wilder\u2019s Report and Recommendation &#8230; is adopted in full; and &#8230; Royal Caribbean\u2019s Omnibus Motion to Stay Litigation and Compel Arbitration &#8230; is denied.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1580\">Coldest Junes in Florida since 1895<\/a><\/p>\n<p><!-- --><!--]--><!--]--><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><!-- --><\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Fort Lauderdale judge ruled victims of a Royal Caribbean crew member\u2019s hidden-camera spying on Symphony of the Seas cannot be forced into arbitration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1585,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1586","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules - Florida Moving Chronicle<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules - Florida Moving Chronicle\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A Fort Lauderdale judge ruled victims of a Royal Caribbean crew member\u2019s hidden-camera spying on Symphony of the Seas cannot be forced into arbitration.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Florida Moving Chronicle\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-09T21:32:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/482f60b6a0b7cc84b37966d78057552f\"},\"headline\":\"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-09T21:32:15+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586\"},\"wordCount\":808,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Travel\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586\",\"name\":\"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules - Florida Moving Chronicle\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-09T21:32:15+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/482f60b6a0b7cc84b37966d78057552f\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":674,\"caption\":\"Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas is the fourth Oasis-class ship for the cruise line, and inherited the title of world's largest cruise ship. (Richard Tribou\\\/Orlando Sentinel\\\/TNS)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?p=1586#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Florida Moving Chronicle\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/482f60b6a0b7cc84b37966d78057552f\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/floridamovingchronicle.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules - Florida Moving Chronicle","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules - Florida Moving Chronicle","og_description":"A Fort Lauderdale judge ruled victims of a Royal Caribbean crew member\u2019s hidden-camera spying on Symphony of the Seas cannot be forced into arbitration.","og_url":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586","og_site_name":"Florida Moving Chronicle","article_published_time":"2026-06-09T21:32:15+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/#\/schema\/person\/482f60b6a0b7cc84b37966d78057552f"},"headline":"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules","datePublished":"2026-06-09T21:32:15+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586"},"wordCount":808,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg","articleSection":["Travel"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586","url":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586","name":"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules - Florida Moving Chronicle","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-09T21:32:15+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/#\/schema\/person\/482f60b6a0b7cc84b37966d78057552f"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/18239b3ba905941dc8f34336e4a0ef0b.jpg","width":1200,"height":674,"caption":"Royal Caribbean Symphony of the Seas is the fourth Oasis-class ship for the cruise line, and inherited the title of world's largest cruise ship. (Richard Tribou\/Orlando Sentinel\/TNS)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?p=1586#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Victims of \u2018video voyeur\u2019 on ship can\u2019t be forced into arbitration, judge rules"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/","name":"Florida Moving Chronicle","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/#\/schema\/person\/482f60b6a0b7cc84b37966d78057552f","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com"],"url":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1586","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1586"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1586\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1586"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1586"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/floridamovingchronicle.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1586"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}