Do Cruise Ships Have Jails? & What Happens If You Break The Law On-Board

Table Of Content

• Love Cruising? Then Follow Us on Social Media
• Dealing with Unruly Passengers
• Are there police on cruise ships?
• What Do Guest Security Supervisors Do On Cruise Ships?
• The Guest Was a Danger to Themselves or Other Guests
• What happens if you miss your cruise ship
• Gastro Outbreak Hits Luxury Cruise Ship
• Cruise ships have jails. Can you get arrested on a cruise ship?

The best way to avoid both catching and transmitting germs is to wash your hands, particularly before eating and after using the restroom or coming in contact with high-touch surfaces like handrails and elevator buttons. However, ships are held to high cleanliness standards that are dictated and monitored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention via the Vessel Sanitation Program, which was implemented in the 1970s. Cruise ships are a popular vacation option for people looking to relax and have fun while exploring new destinations.

Love Cruising? Then Follow Us on Social Media

The safety of the ship is paramount, and security measures in place are designed to protect everyone onboard. While cruise ships are often seen as floating paradises, incidents can happen and passengers or crew members can sometimes misbehave, to the point that they have to be locked up for the guests’ security and/or safety. Safety and security are paramount on cruise ships to ensure the well-being of passengers and crew. Passengers are only detained in the ship’s jail if they pose a severe threat to the vessel or its passengers. Overall, while cruise ship jails may seem like a scary concept, they are necessary for ensuring the safety and security of all passengers and crew members on board. Passengers who are placed in the jail facilities on a cruise ship are typically escorted there by ship security personnel.

Dealing with Unruly Passengers

Carnival Cruise passenger nearly spends 3 days in cruise jail after piano bar incident. She’s contesting why - The Daily Dot

Carnival Cruise passenger nearly spends 3 days in cruise jail after piano bar incident. She’s contesting why.

Posted: Sat, 24 Feb 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Most of the security team comprises security staff who you will most commonly see around the ship. Reporting to the Chief of Security will be security officers and supervisors from the security department. You will be held in the brig until the end of the cruise or the next port when you will be disembarked and handed over to the authorities.

Are there police on cruise ships?

They are not designed for long-term stays and are used only in rare cases. If a passenger or crew member commits a crime or acts in a way that threatens the safety and well-being of others on board, they will be detained in the ship’s jail until the ship reaches the next port of call. Whenever you have a large group of people together crimes can be committed either deliberately or as a consequence of a situation or incident occurring between unruly passengers or crew members. Yes, cruise ships have CCTV security cameras installed in various locations around the ship.

The good news is that the overall number of serious crimes reported was quite low when compared to passenger counts. In a year in which more than 13 million passengers boarded ships in U.S. ports, fewer than 100 serious crimes were reported to the FBI. Most security issues onboard ships at sea are relatively minor cases of public intoxication, which rarely rise to the level of criminal prosecution. Ship's staff are trained to deal with these cases, prevent escalation and, in most cases, keep them from affecting other passengers. But it stands to reason that all that intoxication can sometimes lead to more serious crimes.

In the event of a crime or incident, the jurisdiction can vary depending on the location of the ship and the nationality of the passengers and crew. Yes, cruise ships do have jail facilities, commonly referred to as brigs. These facilities are used to hold passengers who have broken the law or are a threat to security while at sea. The term "brig" comes from the word "brigantine," which is a type of two-masted sailing ship formerly used to house criminals. These small holding cells are located in the crew-only areas of the ship and are used to detain passengers who have broken the law or pose a danger to themselves or others. While the idea of a jail on a cruise ship may seem daunting, it's important to note that cruise lines only use the brig as a last resort and do not intend to hold passengers for long periods of time.

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Posted: Wed, 17 Apr 2024 20:56:59 GMT [source]

In some cases, the crew members may be required to take more serious action. For example, if a passenger is causing a disturbance that cannot be resolved through verbal warnings, the crew members may detain the passenger in a brig or jail on board the ship. These holding cells are designed to ensure the safety of the passenger and other passengers on board. If a passenger is found to be intoxicated and causing a disturbance, the crew members may confine the passenger to their cabin for a period of time. This is known as cabin arrest and is a common practice on cruise ships.

In such cases, cruise lines adhere to particular measures to ensure the safety and security of all guests and crew members aboard a ship. We dug through the most recent reports (available from the U.S. Department of Transportation) to determine the prevalence of serious crimes at sea. We looked at a total of five quarters, covering all of 2017 and the first quarter of 2018.

Cruise lines don’t like to publicize this feature, and the average cruiser may never walk past the brig or even realize it exists during their cruise vacation as it is tucked well out of sight. As nautical engineering evolved, the term “brig” stuck around and refers to the jail on a ship. The brig is a secure, locked room or set of rooms where individuals are temporarily held. Think of it like a detention area designed to manage exceptional situations that might arise during your voyage. We looked into what they can see when we covered whether and how cruise ship scanners can see alcohol. Generally, you will be held in the brig until the end of the cruise or the next port, when you will be disembarked and handed over to the authorities.

Cruise lines try to avoid this, but some situations warrant it when there are no other options. In most situations, this would be dealt with without the use of the Brig. If the passenger had committed a serious crime in pursuit of their scam – entering crew-only areas for example, the Brig may be used. Amazingly some people do go on cruises to try and scam the cruise lines.

Cruise ships attempt to minimize passenger disturbances and crime at all costs. Since the onboard jail or brig is secluded from guests, most people wonder if cruise ships have jails and how they handle crime. The responsibility of a cruise ship security guard is to ensure the safety and security of passengers, crew members, and the ship itself while at sea. Each ship has also a designated security officer on board who works closely with the cruise ship captain and the cruise line’s company security officer back at HQ. Their primary role is to ensure the ship’s security plan is up-to-date and that every security measure is being followed. People are detained in the ship’s jail or placed under cabin arrest to maintain order and safety onboard until the ship reaches a port where local authorities can take over, if necessary.

Unless the passenger is a security threat or has committed a serious crime, the likelihood of being thrown in a cruise ship brig is highly unlikely. All cruise ships have what is known as a brig.  A brig is a nautical term for a jail or detention area on a vessel. It’s used to detain guests that have broken the law or are considered a danger to themselves or other guests onboard. In case of any emergency, cruise ships have a well-trained security team that can respond quickly and efficiently.

It's wise to take your own photos when possible and to request copies of all documentation, including copies of any written statements made by you or other witnesses. It depends on how serious the crime was, and they will only be put in the brig as a last resort. If it is decided that someone has committed a serious crime onboard that requires detainment, the ship’s security team will detain the individual, often in the brig, until the ship reaches the next port. Local authorities will then handle the situation, as cruise lines cooperate fully with law enforcement and local government agencies. There is also a security team, consisting of security guards and guest security supervisors, on duty.