The companies that own and operate the ship that destroyed the Francis Scott Key Bridge are asking to put a long-awaited civil trial on hold after the U.S. Department of Justice announced criminal charges in the case last week.

The trial is set to begin June 1 in federal court in Baltimore.

In a court filing Monday, the Singaporean companies — Grace Ocean Private Ltd., which owns the container ship Dali, and Synergy Marine Group, the vessel’s operator — argues that the criminal charges would harm their ability to defend themselves at the civil trial over their liability in the Key Bridge collapse.

“Synergy is now in an untenable position where it must defend itself here while facing criminal charges,” the companies’ attorneys wrote. Grace Ocean has not been criminally charged.

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Federal prosecutors said the March 26, 2024, disaster could have been averted if Synergy Marine Group had responsibly maintained the ship’s generators. Instead, the company used a pump not intended for that job, the indictment alleges.

A 47-year-old technical superintendent for Synergy, Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair, also faces criminal charges. He is accused of removing references to the improperly connected pump from ship records.

Every member of the ship crew invoked their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during depositions in the civil case. Several crew members have been stuck in the Baltimore area for the past two years, unable to return home because of an agreement between Synergy and the federal government.

Those who were allowed to leave the country fear that if they return, they will be detained like their fellow crew members, Synergy’s attorneys wrote.

All the employees the company intends to call at trial have said they will not come to the U.S. to testify.

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The companies have asked for the civil trial to be put on hold until the criminal case concludes, which could take years.

Alternatively, Synergy asked for a pause of at least 90 days to determine whether the company can obtain immunity protections for its other employees, which could enable them to testify.

The civil trial would determine whether Grace Ocean and Synergy can cap their liability in the crash at $44 million, just a fraction of the cost to rebuild the Key Bridge. Ahead of the trial, the companies reached a $2.25 billion settlement with the state of Maryland. They also reached a separate, undisclosed agreement with the state’s insurance company.

The remaining parties include the city of Baltimore and the families of six construction workers who were working on the bridge and died when the crash sent the span into the Patapsco River.

They will have a chance to respond before a judge decides whether to put the civil trial on hold.

Madeleine O’Neill is a freelance reporter in Baltimore.