JAMESTOWN, Rhode Island (10 Apr 2006) -- The world's largest scuba diving organization, which sets standards for scuba instruction and certification, has revoked the membership of David Swain, the Jamestown scuba shop owner who a civil jury determined in February killed his wife during a 1999 diving vacation. The Professional Association of Diving Instructors revoked Swain's membership on March 2, six days after a Superior Court jury awarded more than $3.5 million in damages to Richard and Lisa Tyre, the parents of Shelley Tyre. She died March 12, 1999 in waters off the Caribbean island of Tortola. The revocation of his membership means Swain "can no longer represent himself as a member of PADI or conduct training in scuba courses," Patricia A. Fousek, of PADI, based in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., said Friday. Fousek would not explain why the organization chose to revoke Swain's membership other than to say it was aware of the civil judgment against him. Teaching and certifying new scuba divers is a major part of any scuba shop business. About 70 of all certified scuba divers in America have been taught and received their certification by instructors sanctioned through the PADI program, said Fousek. Swain, who operates Ocean State Scuba, said Friday that the decision to revoke his membership would have no impact on his business. "There are other people here who are certified [diving instructors] who teach students. This is a pretty big place. There's plenty of other things for me to do." Swain and Tyre, both experienced divers, were diving with friends for a week on a chartered sailboat off Tortola. On the last day for diving, they entered the water together while their friends and their friends' young son waited on the boat. Swain surfaced alone about 35 minutes later. Their friend, Christian Thwaites, found Tyre's body minutes later after he entered the water. | | David Swain in court During eight days of testimony, the lawyer for Richard and Lisa Tyre, J. Renn Olenn, presented about two dozen witnesses, including experts in the field of underwater forensics, to advance his theory that Swain attacked Shelley Tyre from behind, shut off her air supply and held her down until she drowned. Olenn told the jury that Swain killed his wife for money at a time he was romantically pursuing another woman. A prenuptial agreement prevented Swain from receiving anything from Tyre if they divorced. But Olenn said Swain gained more than $570,000 from her death. Swain has called his wife's death a "tragic accident" and has denied any involvement. He has never been charged with a crime. Tortola police ruled Shelley Tyre's death an accident "unless proven otherwise." On March 16, Swain filed a notice of appeal with the state Supreme Court but it will be months before any review, court spokesman Craig N. Berke said. SOURCE - The Providence Journal |
