The captain of a boat which in 2019 caught fire and sank off the coast of California killing 34 people was sentenced to four years in prison on Thursday. A US judge sentenced 70-year-old Jerry Nehl Boylan to 48 months in federal prison after a jury found the captain guilty of one count of misconduct or neglect of a ship officer – an offence commonly called “seaman’s manslaughter” – in November. The offence could have carried a sentence of up to 10 years. The defence had hoped for a suspended sentence. “The defendant’s cowardice and repeated failures caused the horrific deaths of 34 people,” sa…