Once they have set sail, cruise ships are governed by maritime (also called admiralty) law. This regulates ships in domestic and international waters. The jurisdiction of a crime depends on how far it occurs from land.
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The US Coast Guard is responsible for enforcing and regulating cruise ship safety.
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Once a cruise ship sets sail, they are then governed by maritime law, which is responsible for regulating all vessels in both domestic, and international waters. The exact jurisdiction of a specific crime depends on how far it should occur from land, and the territory it occurs within.
Once a ship exceeds the 24-mile marker, it is then in International Waters, and must follow the law of the country whose flag it's flying. So, if a cruise ship is registered in the Bahamas, and is 30 miles off the coast of Florida, it is subject to Bahamian law, not U.S. law.
The Jones Act (also known as the Passenger Services Act) does not allow ships of Non-U.S registry to embark and debark guests at two different U.S ports, since travel between U.S. ports is prohibited on foreign flagged ships.
Minor rules that get broken may not result in you going to the ship's brig. Often, minor offenses will result in a person simply being remanded to their cabin with security outside to ensure they don't leave. But when serious crimes occur, the captain may feel it necessary to put the person in the brig.
If you wonder whether cruise ships have jails, the answer is yes. Jails are called brigs on a cruise ship and tend only to be used in serious circumstances when no other options are available. Cabin arrest is typically used before the brig is needed.
The documentation is required at embarkation and throughout the cruise and is the responsibility of the guest. Our policy states that any guest traveling without proper documentation will be denied boarding the ship and will be under full penalty, and therefore, will not be offered a refund or a replacement cruise.
The simple answer to this question is because there is a 1830s law on the books that states that foreign-flagged ships are not supposed to transport passengers from one U.S. port to another without stopping in a foreign country.