A 40-year-old Boston man is set to appear in Suffolk Superior Court on Wednesday to face manslaughter and other felony charges connected to a boat crash near Logan International Airport that killed a 24-year-old Andover woman in May. Prosecutors say Lawrence Shieh was driving the vessel at reckless speed through a restricted area of Boston Harbor when it struck Pier 4R, a structure supporting Logan's Runway 4R, ejecting all four people aboard onto the rocky shoreline.
Suffolk County prosecutors announced the four felony charges and additional misdemeanor counts against Shieh, according to MassLive. He faces manslaughter, homicide by boat while under the influence, two counts of operating a boat while under the influence causing serious injury, and violating a security zone at Logan Airport, along with a misdemeanor charge of using a boat without authority. The felony counts followed a three-month joint investigation led by the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office and Massachusetts State Police Investigative Services Commander Lt. Col. Jeffrey Boutwell, according to Boston 25 News.
The crash happened at approximately 11:20 p.m. on May 13, when the twin-engine powerboat struck the pier off Perimeter Road, according to CBS News. Pier 4R extends into Boston Harbor directly adjacent to Logan's active runways, and the outlet reported that emergency crews from Massport Fire, Boston EMS, Massachusetts State Police, and Massachusetts Environmental Police carried out a complex extrication in total darkness over slippery rocks, performing CPR on scene while commercial flights continued landing and taking off overhead.
Chaotic 911 Call Described a Second Boat That Wasn't There
The initial emergency response was complicated by conflicting information. A surviving passenger's 911 call reported that another boat had hit them, that a friend was bleeding out and unresponsive, and that a vessel was resting on top of victims, per dispatch logs cited by CBS News. Responders searched the harbor waters before determining no second vessel was involved and that it was a single-vessel crash.
Boston EMS reported that the crash killed one passenger and injured three others, per an image caption cited by MassLive. The three surviving occupants — Shieh and two 23-year-old female friends — were transported to Massachusetts General Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries, according to Boston 25 News, and were expected to recover.
Blood Alcohol Level Twice the Legal Limit
According to Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden, Shieh had a blood alcohol level twice the state's legal limit at the time of the crash. MassLive reported that Shieh had been drinking with friends at Wheelhouse Boston before the group took a boat without permission from Freedom Boat Club, of which Shieh was a member, prosecutors said.
Freedom Boat Club's parent company, Brunswick Corporation, confirmed in May that the boat was taken from its Seaport dock outside normal business hours without authorization, operating entirely outside the company's knowledge or access protocols, according to Fox News Digital. How Shieh allegedly obtained access to the vessel after hours remains an open question ahead of the court proceedings.
Restricted Waters Near an Active Runway
The waters surrounding the Runway 4R pier form part of a restricted security zone governed by Massport and federal authorities, where unauthorized vessel entry presents severe aviation safety hazards, according to Universal Hub. Marine traffic entering the Runway 4R approach can obstruct airport glide slopes and force flight diversions, which is why Shieh's alleged path through that zone carries its own separate charge.
Under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90B, operating a vessel under the influence of alcohol resulting in death or serious bodily injury is classified as a major felony carrying statutory state prison sentences, per Mass.gov. The statutes mirror the state's motor vehicle OUI laws in severity, underscoring the legal exposure Shieh now faces in Suffolk Superior Court.
Remembering Elizabeth Dankert
The victim, Elizabeth Dankert, was identified as the 24-year-old killed in the crash. She grew up in Andover and graduated from Central Catholic High School in Lawrence before attending Union College in Schenectady, New York, where she majored in English, played college soccer, and worked as a tutor in the school's writing center.
At the time of the crash, Dankert was living in Boston and working for Boston-headquartered software firm PTC after graduating from Union College in 2024, according to CBS News. Her obituary remembered her for her signature sparkle. Funeral services were held on May 21 at St. Augustine's Church in Andover, following a wake in North Andover attended by hundreds of family members, friends, and former teammates, Boston 25 News reported.
Shieh is expected to appear in Suffolk Superior Court on Wednesday morning to face the charges. The case remains in its early stages, and questions about the initial multi-vessel 911 reports and the exact circumstances of how the boat was accessed are likely to factor into upcoming proceedings.
-4.webp?w=160&h=400&fit=crop&crop=edges)