Lawsuit Over Alleged Rape on USNS Carson City Dismissed as Workers’ Comp Claim

The August 2026 dismissal closes a multiyear legal battle brought by Dominguez, who served as a first assistant engineer aboard the Military Sealift Command expeditionary fast transport vessel. According to Stars and Stripes, Dominguez sued the federal government in 2023, alleging that the Navy failed to protect her and care for her after she reported the December 2021 attack.

Court Proceedings and Federal Employees’ Compensation Act Ruling

U.S. District Judge Edward Kiel paused the civil lawsuit in July 2024 after government attorneys argued that a 1952 Supreme Court ruling, Johansen v. United States, restricted civilian mariners employed by the government to recovering damages exclusively through the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA) for personal injuries sustained while performing their duties, as reported by Newsweek.

In May 2026, Dominguez’s legal team informed the court that the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs accepted her claim following medical development that supported a compensable work-related injury, according to Newsweek. Dominguez’s attorneys argued in court filings that she was off-duty, unconscious, and asleep in her bed after a social outing when the assault occurred, maintaining that the incident was unequivocally separate from her professional duties.

On August 10, 2026, Dominguez’s legal team notified the court that she would not appeal the workers’ compensation determination, stating that the acceptance included a finding that an assault at work constitutes a workplace injury—a conclusion Dominguez firmly rejects, according to Newsweek. Judge Kiel dismissed the case the following day.

Criminal Investigations and Coast Guard Actions

Criminal charges were not ultimately brought against the ship’s captain, identified in court documents as Yamil Sanchez Padilla, according to Newsweek. A separate investigation by the U.S. Coast Guard concluded that Sanchez Padilla engaged in a sexual act with a crewmember when she could not consent, but did not generate criminal charges, as reported by Newsweek.

The Coast Guard closed its inquiry after Sanchez Padilla surrendered his mariner credential. Under federal regulations, mariners facing suspension and revocation charges are permitted to surrender credentials rather than contest allegations, allowing the Coast Guard to close cases without findings on the merits, according to Newsweek. Sanchez Padilla denies the allegations, according to statements reviewed by Newsweek from the Maritime Legal Aid and advocacy group.

Impact on Civilian Mariners and Legal Representation

Dominguez’s attorney, Christine Dunn of Sanford Heisler Sharp LLP, stated that the civil lawsuit targeted the U.S. government rather than the individual captain to challenge institutional practices. “To create real systemic change that has the power to keep people safer, you have to go after the institution,” Dunn told Newsweek.

Dunn contrasted the incident with typical physical injuries experienced at sea, such as dislocated shoulders or impacts caused by ship rolls. “Those are injuries that happen in the course of performing your duties on a ship. That is very different from being raped in your sleep in your bed. That should not be workers’ comp,” Dunn told Stars and Stripes.

Dominguez, who also serves as a lieutenant commander in the Navy Reserve, took an unpaid year away from work to manage her recovery and the ongoing litigation, during which her health insurance paused, creating financial hardships, according to Stars and Stripes. She continued living in the same room where the assault occurred for nearly two years while securing permission to install a deadbolt on her door, facing ongoing challenges accessing consistent mental health care due to state licensing restrictions and geographic relocation, as reported by Stars and Stripes.