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US Navy Civilian Engineer Allegedly Assaulted by Ship’s Captain, Judge Rules It Was ‘Within Her Duties’ and a ‘Work Injury’

Apparently, this counts as a workplace injury

By Umme Tun Nessa Aug 28th, 2026, 12:47 pm

Getting hurt at work can mean many things, especially for someone working aboard a ship. An employee could fall, get hurt by equipment, or be injured when the ship suddenly moves. But being sexually assaulted while sleeping in a private room is very different.

That difference is now at the center of a case involving a civilian engineer who worked aboard a U.S. Navy transport ship. An alleged assault from 2021 eventually turned into a legal fight over whether what happened should be treated as a workplace injury.

According to Stars and Stripes, Elsie Dominguez alleges she was raped in her bed by the captain of the USNS Carson City. After the Department of Labor determined her claim should be handled under federal workers’ compensation law, a judge dismissed her lawsuit against the government.

Since when is this part of the job?

Dominguez was working as the first assistant engineer aboard the USNS Carson City, an expeditionary fast transport vessel operated by the Navy’s Military Sealift Command, when the alleged assault occurred in December 2021. She alleges Captain Yamil Sanchez Padilla used a master access code to enter her private room overnight and raped her in her bed.

Dominguez reported the alleged assault the following morning through the proper reporting procedures. She later sued the federal government in 2023, accusing the Navy of failing to care for and protect her after she came forward.

Coming forward about sexual misconduct in the military has raised concerns before, particularly over how those reports are handled. The Navy has faced scrutiny over the treatment of women serving aboard its submarines, while retaliation after reporting sexual assault has also been a concern for those who speak up. 

For Dominguez, the case eventually came down to whether the alleged assault and resulting injuries fell under the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act. In 2024, the court directed the Department of Labor to determine whether FECA applied because she was working under temporary travel status when the alleged assault occurred.   

While that question remained unresolved, Coast Guard prosecutors filed a sexual misconduct complaint against Padilla in February 2025. That proceeding was later withdrawn after he surrendered his merchant mariner credentials. Padilla has maintained that his encounter with Dominguez was consensual.

The Labor Department ultimately determined that her claim should be handled as a work injury. That decision led U.S. District Judge Edward Kiel to dismiss her lawsuit this month.  

Dominguez’s attorney, Christine Dunn, argues that workers’ compensation should cover injuries that happen while someone is actually performing their duties aboard a ship. Dominguez has previously dislocated her shoulder and been slammed against a wall when a ship rolled, which Dunn pointed to as examples of those kinds of injuries.   

“Those are injuries that happen in the course of performing your duties on a ship,” Dunn said. “That is very different from being raped in your sleep in your bed. That should not be workers’ comp.”

The years following the alleged assault also took a personal and financial toll on Dominguez. She reportedly continued living in the same room for nearly two years and struggled to access consistent therapy while working overseas. “I wasn’t afforded the chance to be on land and to just walk into a therapist’s office,” she said.

Dominguez took a year of unpaid leave to recover and focus on the lawsuit, while her health insurance was paused. “That year was also me trying to find myself and a way to keep moving forward,” she said. 

Dominguez has since returned to work and is now the first assistant engineer aboard the USS Lewis B. Puller. She said the publicity surrounding the case has affected some of her interactions with coworkers. “There’s less opportunity for any type of bonding or camaraderie,” she said. “It’s a lonelier world than it already was.” 

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Umme Tun Nessa

Umme Tun Nessa is a writer at The Mary Sue who covers film, television, and the internet’s endless ability to turn pop culture into a daily group chat. She is drawn to sharp dialogue, unhinged press-tour moments, and any movie that sounds a little too strange to exist. She would also like it noted that “just one episode” has never once meant one episode.