Manslaughter Charge Filed In July Connecticut River Boat Crash

PORTLAND, CT — The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection's Environmental Conservation Police have charged a Rocky Hill man with manslaughter in connection with a July 10 fatal single-craft boating accident on the Connecticut River in Portland.

An extensive investigation was conducted by EnCon officers and the department's Boating Accident Reconstruction Unit leading up to the arrest, officials said.

On Friday, EnCon Police secured a warrant from Superior Court in Middletown and took 55-year-old Rocky Hill resident Kerry Sheltra into custody, authorities said.

Sheltra was charged with a single count of second-degree manslaughter, three counts of second-degree assault and two counts of risk of Injury to a minor.

He was released on a $50,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in Middletown Superior Court on Dec. 7, EnCon police said.

At about 5 p.m. on July 10, which was a Sunday, the Portland Fire Department and EnCon Police responded to a report of a serious boating accident in the Connecticut River just north of Petzolds Marina, according to an incident report.

Eight people were on board a vessel being operated by Sheltra that collided with the shore, according to an incident report. The collision resulted in the death of one adult on board — Wayne Hamler, 60, of Waterford, who was pronounced dead at the scene, according to an incident report.

Two people on board sustained what EnCon police described as "serious life-altering injuries," and three others were treated for non-life-threatening injuries, according to an incident report. Two of those on the boat were between the ages of six and 12, according to an incident report.

At the time of the crash, DEEP officials said the 21-foot Yamaha jet craft "suddenly veered toward the shoreline," and the vessel "ultimately collided with rocks on the bank of the river."

All eight passengers were ejected from the boat due to the impact of the crash, DEEP officials said.