Overview
- Martha Nolan‑O'Slattara was found unresponsive aboard the yacht Ripple at the Montauk Yacht Club on August 5, 2025 and was pronounced dead at the scene.
- Newly released Montauk Fire Department patient‑care records published August 8, 2026 say EMTs found her cool to the touch with purple nail beds and dried blood around her mouth, head, and chest while noting no active bleeding or obvious source of trauma.
- The designer's family filed a $50 million wrongful‑death lawsuit against boat owner Christopher Durnan on August 6, 2026 alleging assault and negligence and seeking damages and discovery of records.
- Suffolk County police say the case was initially treated with a homicide‑level response but that investigators found no evidence of foul play, the county medical examiner has not publicly released its autopsy, and Durnan has not been charged.
- Lawyers and witnesses point to scene details such as reported screams, blood on the body, and accounts of Durnan running on the dock as key issues that the civil case could expose through discovery and further public forensic review.