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Jury acquits fishing boat captain in fatal stabbing

By CHRIS TISCH
Published March 17, 2006

LARGO - A fishing boat skipper was acquitted Thursday of stabbing to death a crewman during an argument on their vessel five years ago.

Jurors took about an hour to find Richard Rimmer, 44, not guilty of second-degree murder. Rimmer clutched a Bible at the defense table while his wife, seated behind him, yelled, "Praise the Lord" as the verdict was read.

Prosecutors said Rimmer stabbed to death Robert Edward Williams, 31, during a November 2001 fight aboard the vessel Captain D, which was docked in Madeira Beach. Williams had accused Rimmer, the boat's captain, of withholding money from him after a previous fishing trip.

The case hinged on the testimony of Bruce Hethcox, the third fisherman on the boat that night. Hethcox told investigators that Rimmer confronted Williams with a knife on the boat's stern. Hethcox said he heard a splash, then saw Rimmer with a bloody knife. He said Rimmer admitted to stabbing Williams, then recruited him to help cover up the crime.

Williams' body was found in the water the next day. Rimmer was charged with murder 16 months later.

Hethcox proved a terrible witness. He claimed to not remember many of the events of that night and said things that conflicted with his previous statements.

"He just played dumb on the stand," prosecutor Bill Burgess said after the verdict. "He remembered some facts and didn't remember others."

Defense attorney Daniel J. Fernandez also said Hethcox was the key to the acquittal. "He sank the state's case," Fernandez said.

After the verdict, Rimmer approached Williams' parents to say he was "very, very sorry."

Williams' stepfather told him: "Get out of here."

Rimmer declined to comment afterward. As he walked down the hallway away from the courtroom, he lifted his Bible in the air and said: "Praise God."

[Last modified March 17, 2006, 01:54:15]