Boat operator in fatal Mattituck crash seeks to limit liability Police on scene of the fatal boat crash in November 2019. (Credit: Joe Werkmeister/file) The operator of a boat involved in a 2019 crash that killed a Riverhead woman is petitioning in federal court for exoneration from liability from claims in the crash, according to court documents filed April 12. Francesco Distefano of East Northport, through his attorneys at Rubin, Fiorella, Friedman & Mercante, is seeking to invoke what’s known as the Limitation of Liability Act, which allows vessel owners to limit liability owed to injured parties to the value of the vessel.