Joseph Patrick Dugat, 45, of Marathon, Florida, was found dead on July 25, 2020, in a dinghy at the mooring marina in Boot Key Harbor. Deputies responded at about 10:30 p.m. on a Saturday after reports of shots fired; Dugat had been shot multiple times, including wounds to the face, head, and arm. He lived on anchor at Boot Key Harbor.

Christopher W. Davis, 59, who also lived on a boat anchored at Boot Key Harbor, was arrested and charged in connection with Dugat’s killing. Davis told investigators he had longstanding disputes with a group of liveaboards, claimed he feared they were vandalizing his boat and might set it on fire, and said members of the group had threatened him. Davis said he saw Dugat approach his sailboat in a dinghy, asked if Dugat was armed, and when Dugat raised his arm he believed he saw a pistol and shot him several times with a 12-gauge shotgun and a .22-caliber rifle, continuing to fire after Dugat slumped because he feared Dugat might still pose a threat.

The case exposed deep tensions within the Boot Key Harbor liveaboard community. Did anyone in the area see Dugat or that dinghy the night of the shooting, or have information about disputes among the liveaboards?