Families Sue U.S. Government Over Caribbean Killings — Arguing There Was No War

News Americas, NEW YORK, NY, Jan. 28, 2026: The families of two Trinidad and Tobago nationals killed last year during a U.S. military strike in Caribbean waters have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the United States government, arguing the Caribbean killings were unlawful because no armed conflict existed.

MV-22 Osprey aircraft are parked on the tarmac at Mercedita Airport in Ponce, Puerto Rico, on January 15, 2026. (Photo by Ricardo ARDUENGO / AFP via Getty Images)

The suit, filed yesterday in federal court in Massachusetts, is being brought by the mother of Chad Joseph, 26, and the sister of Rishi Samaroo, 41, who were among six people killed on October 14, 2025, when a U.S. missile struck a boat Washington alleged was transporting drugs.

The case is being pursued under the Death on the High Seas Act, which allows civil claims for wrongful deaths occurring in international waters, and the Alien Tort Statute, which permits foreign nationals to seek redress in U.S. courts for violations of international law. At least 125 people have been killed in these strikes since September 2025.

Legal advocates describe the lawsuit as the first of its kind brought against the Trump administration over its expanded use of military force in anti-narcotics operations in the Caribbean. At the time of the strike, U.S. officials said the operation targeted “narco-terrorists” linked to drug trafficking networks allegedly operating between Venezuela and the United States. However, the lawsuit contends that no evidence has been publicly produced to support claims that the victims were affiliated with drug cartels or terrorist organizations.

Instead, the plaintiffs argue that Joseph and Samaroo were civilians who were traveling by boat after engaging in fishing and agricultural work in Venezuela.

“There was no armed conflict,” the lawsuit states. “As such, the laws of war do not apply. These were wrongful deaths and extrajudicial killings carried out without legal justification.”

The Trump administration has previously told members of Congress that the United States is engaged in a non-international armed conflict with transnational drug cartels, using that position to justify the use of lethal military force. The lawsuit directly challenges that claim, asserting that treating alleged drug trafficking as a battlefield conflict erodes international law and due process protections.

The families are being represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, (ACLU) and the Center for Constitutional Rights, (CCR). They are seeking punitive damages, to be determined at trial.

“These were lawless killings in cold blood,” said CCR Legal Director Baher Azmy. “The United States cannot declare a war where none exists and then execute people without trial.”

“The Trump administration’s boat strikes are the heinous acts of people who claim they can abuse their power with impunity around the world,” said Brett Max Kaufman, senior counsel at the ACLU. “In seeking justice for the senseless killing of their loved ones, our clients are bravely demanding accountability for their devastating losses and standing up against the administration’s assault on the rule of law.”

In a statement, Samaroo’s sister said her brother had served time for a past crime and was attempting to rebuild his life.

“Rishi used to call our family almost every day, and then one day he disappeared, and we never heard from him again,” said Sallycar Korasingh, Rishi Samaroo’s sister. “Rishi was a hardworking man who paid his debt to society and was just trying to get back on his feet again and to make a decent living in Venezuela to help provide for his family. If the U.S. government believed Rishi had done anything wrong, it should have arrested, charged, and detained him, not murdered him. They must be held accountable.”

“Chad was a loving and caring son who was always there for me, for his wife and children, and for our whole family. I miss him terribly. We all do,” said Joseph’s mother, Lenore Burnley. “We know this lawsuit won’t bring Chad back to us, but we’re trusting God to carry us through this, and we hope that speaking out will help get us some truth and closure.”

Prior to his murder, Joseph lived with his wife and their three children in Las Cuevas, Trinidad. To support his family, he often traveled to Venezuela to fish and for farmwork. On October 12, he called his wife to let her know that he had found a boat ride home from Venezuela and would see her in a couple of days. On October 14, his wife and Ms. Burnley saw social media reports of a boat strike; fearing that the boat was his, they repeatedly called him, but got no reply. His family has not heard from him since.

Samaroo was born in El Soccorro, Trinidad, where his elderly father, eight younger siblings, and two of his three sons still reside. His elderly mother lives nearby in San Juan. In 2024, he was released early on parole after serving a 15-year sentence for his participation in a homicide. Following his release, Mr. Samaroo moved to Las Cuevas, where he fished and worked in construction to support himself and his family. In August 2025, he let his family know that he was working on a farm in Venezuela, taking care of goats and cows and making cheese. He would call his family almost every day when he was in Venezuela, and in an Oct. 12 call with Ms. Korasingh, he told her he was returning home to Trinidad and would see her in a few days because their mother had fallen ill, and he wanted to help take care of her. That was the last time Ms. Korasingh or anyone else in the family heard from him.

The lawsuit also comes amid growing scrutiny of U.S. military strikes in Caribbean and eastern Pacific waters, which human rights groups say have resulted in more than 100 deaths since late 2025.

“Using military force to kill Chad and Rishi violates the most elementary principles of international law,” said Jonathan Hafetz, a Professor at Seton Hall Law School. “People may not simply be gunned down by the government, and the Trump administration’s claims to the contrary risk making America a pariah state.”

Trinidad and Tobago’s government has previously expressed support for aggressive anti-drug operations, though questions remain about the legality and oversight of foreign military actions in the region.

President Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth have publicly boasted about and published videos of the strikes – including the strike that killed Mr. Joseph and Mr. Samaroo. However, the strikes’ victims have remained largely anonymous, seen only as specks on a screen. The Trinidadian Foreign Minister Sean Sobers told a local news outlet after the strike that “the government has no information linking Joseph or Samaroo to illegal activities.”

The U.S. State Department and Department of Defense have not yet publicly responded to the lawsuit.