Free Republic

(UPI) -- A sailor accused by the Navy of setting fire to and destroying an amphibious assault ship was acquitted Friday by a military judge. Ryan Sawyer Mays, 21, was found not guilty by Capt. Derek Butler of starting the fire that destroyed the $1.2 billion USS Bonhomme Richard. "I am so grateful that this is finally over. It's been a long two years," Mays said outside the court building, flanked by his wife, parents and defense team, according to USNI News. "I've been waiting a long time." The Navy had accused Mays of starting the fire because he was...

According to prosecutors, Ryan Sawyer Mays was a young, arrogant sailor angry about being assigned to deck duty after failing to become a Navy SEAL — and he made the Navy pay in a big way. But the prosecution has presented no physical evidence proving that Mays, 21, set the USS Bonhomme Richard on fire, a fact defense lawyers plan to highlight at the sailor’s court martial that is scheduled to start Monday at Naval Base San Diego. The July 2020 blaze burned for nearly five days and sent an acrid smoke over San Diego, damaging the amphibious assault ship...

Seaman Apprentice Ryan Sawyer Mays is charged with setting the July 2020, fire, which burned for several days while the ship was docked at Naval Base San Diego.

The Navy has charged a sailor in connection with the massive fire that destroyed the USS Bonhomme Richard warship over four days in 2020 while docked off San Diego, a naval spokesman said Thursday.The unidentified sailor was a member of the ship's crew and is accused of starting the July 12, 2020 blaze, the Navy said. The charges are based on evidence collected during an investigation, Navy spokesperson Cmdr. Sean Robertson, said in a statement."Evidence collected during the investigation is sufficient to direct a preliminary hearing in accordance with due process under the military justice system," Robertson said.Vice Adm. Steve...

The U.S. Navy charged a sailor Thursday with starting a fire last year that destroyed the USS Bonhomme Richard docked off San Diego, marking the maritime branch’s worst warship blaze outside of combat in recent memory. The amphibious assault ship burned for more than four days. Left with extensive structural, electrical and mechanical damage, the ship was later scrapped. Estimates to replace it ran up to $4 billion. The sailor was a member of the crew at the time, Cmdr. Sean Robertson, a U.S. 3rd Fleet spokesperson, said in a statement. The sailor was charged with aggravated arson and the...

The U.S. Navy's leadership has drawn a lot of criticism for its wokester focus as its mission goes fallow. Now we're seeing this report: Just before a fire started on a warship that burned for nearly five days in San Diego last summer, a witness told investigators he saw a fellow sailor — known to his leadership for showing disdain toward the Navy — walking to the spot where the blaze first ignited. Ryan Sawyer Mays, a 20-year-old from Kentucky, carried a metal bucket into the vessel’s lower storage area, according to new court documents identifying him as the person...