Judge says relationship a factor in B.C. fatal ferry sinking, gives officer 4 year sentence

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – The navigating officer in charge of a passenger ferry that crashed on Canada's Pacific coast, killing two, has been sentenced to four years in jail.

The Queen of the North, carrying 101 passengers, was on a voyage down British Columbia's Inside Passage, when, shortly after midnight on March 22, 2006, the ship missed a scheduled turn, struck Gil Island and sank. Passengers Gerald Foisy and Shirley Rosette are presumed dead.

Karl Lilgert was convicted last month of criminal negligence causing death.

Judge Sunni Stromberg-Stein said Monday Lilgert's relationship with quartermaster Karen Briker, the only other crew member on the bridge, was a significant factor. It was their first time working alone together since their relationship ended weeks earlier, and the details of the affair were laid bare during the trial.