December 12, 2003

Mr. Adam Lesh, Managing Editor
Kodiak Daily Mirror

Faxed to 907-486-3088
Emailed to kdmnews@ptialaska.net

Dear Mr. Lesh:

Your newspaper published a guest opinion written by Bradley Stevens concerning the Russian-American Company shipwreck Kad'yak. In it, Dr. Stevens made serious allegations concerning my discovery of the wreck and the legality of recent dives I conducted at the site. In addition to thinly veiled accusations of illegal activity, Stevens wrote in his editorial "Now it appears that Lewis, Lloyd, and Hess visited the Kad'yak site and disturbed some of the artifacts. Not only are they interfering with a state research permit, but their actions may be in violation of state law."

According to Peter Hess, an admiralty attorney who is an expert in salvage law, Stevens' statement is untrue. Mr. Hess advises, "No permit is required to search Alaskan waters for shipwrecks; as one federal judge ruled, "Freedom of the seas encompasses the freedom to search for salvageable sites." Brad Stevens' assertion that we are in violation of the law, and that artifacts were disturbed—they were not—is libelous.

The Mirror devoted 742 words to Stevens' diatribe. I have written a rebuttal of exactly the same length—742 words. In the interest of fairness and editorial impartiality, I respectfully ask that you devote the same editorial space to my response as was granted to Dr. Stevens. While the points raised by Stevens are still fresh in the minds of your readers, I submit that my rebuttal is suited for Monday’s issue of the Kodiak Daily Mirror, or Tuesday’s at the latest.

The footnotes are included for your reference, and are not intended for publication.

If you have any questions, or desire any additional information, please call me at [omitted]. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

/s/ Steve Lloyd

This letter was accompanied by my editorial, which was published intact by the newspaper a few days later.
Unfortunately, the editor dropped the title I'd given the piece: "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished".