• The families of Chad Joseph and Rishi Samaroo have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government.
• The lawsuit claims the U.S. missile strike was unlawful and lacked justification.
• The strike resulted in the deaths of six men, including Joseph and Samaroo.
• Joseph and Samaroo were reportedly not involved in any drug trafficking and were merely fishermen.
• This case marks the first federal lawsuit related to the controversial U.S. campaign against drug vessels.

The families of two Trinidadian men killed in a U.S. missile strike on October 14, 2025, are suing the U.S. government, alleging wrongful death and extrajudicial killings. This lawsuit is the first to challenge the legality of the over three dozen strikes authorized by the Trump administration targeting alleged drug traffickers off the coast of Venezuela, reportedly resulting in at least 125 fatalities, including Chad Joseph and Rishi Samaroo, who were just fishing and working in the area, according to NPR, CBS News, and Los Angeles Times.

The lawsuit, filed in Boston's federal court, argues that the strikes lacked any legal justification and termed the killings "murders" ordered by senior government officials. The family representatives highlighted that Joseph and Samaroo had no ties to drug trafficking networks, asserting they were returning home after fishing, which, they claim, establishes the attack as unlawful under both the Death on the High Seas Act and international law, according to Reuters, BBC, and ABC News.

Joseph's mother, Lenore Burnley, and Samaroo's sister, Sallycar Korasingh, contend that this was just one instance of a broader U.S. military campaign that has conducted at least 36 attacks against vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific, which have resulted in significant civilian casualties. "These premeditated and intentional killings lack any plausible legal justification," the lawsuit states, addressing the lack of any armed conflict with drug cartels that could justify such strikes, according to NPR and Los Angeles Times.

The legal action has elicited mixed reactions; some lawmakers and legal experts question the government's justifications for these military actions, emphasizing that the strikes occur without congressional approval. Critics have called the strikes a violation of international law, aligning with sentiments expressed in the lawsuit filed by the families of Joseph and Samaroo, indicating a need for accountability and scrutiny over the military's choices in this campaign, according to Reuters and CBS News.