EP Officer with nothing better to do

[Got Stripers]

I'm venting, because on a past cold Sunday afternoon, nobody fishing, not a boat in the water yet; I get singled out at the ramp by an EP officer who decides on a blustery 38 degrees day I need a safety check. So he writes me a $50 fine for no nav lights, which pisses me off because legally I NEVER have to display them unless at night or in low visibility due to heavy fog or rain. Well MR. EP MAN because of safety reasons (which is the intent of the regs to begin with), I NEVER fish in the winter at night or in crappy weather, so my battery operated nav lights live in storage. I could see the need if I even enter a navagable channel, but I'm inland and fishing in 3-5 feet of water for Gods sake.

With all the poching, idiot young kids who might need a safety lesson, drinking and driving so on and so on; just burns my butt that this guy can't give me a warning and say better have them next time. I've been operating boats safely since before he was born.

I'm tempted to appeal it on principle, but I'm sure legally I need them ready, but the reality is I'll never use them.

Venting over.

[Duke41]

Go ahead and appeal it. Check the rules to see if you can win and go after it. The officer will have to go to court as well. So you can waste his time like he wasted yours. Plus it exposes the fact that the fool was busting your balls for no reason. I had a similar incident and went to court and the clerk magistrate humilated the cop it was great. GO Get em!!

[thefishingfreak]

could be a catch..
since legaly.. you have to have lights because of the size of boat.. and yours were not even on board.
could be different then if you had them and they just weren't turned on at night?

[Hooper]

Originally Posted by Duke41

Go ahead and appeal it. Check the rules to see if you can win and go after it. The officer will have to go to court as well. So you can waste his time like he wasted yours. Plus it exposes the fact that the fool was busting your balls for no reason. I had a similar incident and went to court and the clerk magistrate humilated the cop it was great. GO Get em!!

As a police officer I can say two things, going to court is great because it's overtime.


And secondly, I would absolutely appeal it. Especially if there is insurance surcharges involved. It might be worth researching to see if you might get nailed on your auto insurance, I would not be surprised if that were the case. If you are Boating OUI, you will lose you auto license and we all know how expensive that would be on you insurance premiums.



Sorry you feel you got the shaft. I try hard to only issue money fines when the action is dangerous or reckless. Even careless gets warnings most of the time, we are all human and most people out there are good people who deserve a break, like you.

[Gunpowder]

Originally Posted by Hooper

As a police officer I can say two things, going to court is great because it's overtime.


And secondly, I would absolutely appeal it. Especially if there is insurance surcharges involved. It might be worth researching to see if you might get nailed on your auto insurance, I would not be surprised if that were the case. If you are Boating OUI, you will lose you auto license and we all know how expensive that would be on you insurance premiums.



Sorry you feel you got the shaft. I try hard to only issue money fines when the action is dangerous or reckless. Even careless gets warnings most of the time, we are all human and most people out there are good people who deserve a break, like you.

you wanna be an officer in shrewsbury? we need more like you

[Raven]

but only if they built a new berlin wall across the lake quinsigamond bridge.

[Uncle Matt]

How many people here bitch when they see officers doing nothing and not doing "their jobs?" I wouldn't call an officer doing a safety check wasteing your time as it was so eloquently put.
***
Bob I would look into into the law and then appeal it. Go have your say. Maybe in the end it will be dismissed. Either way, he was doing his job and trying to enforce the boating safety laws. I don't know how many people call that being a fool.
***
Good luck Bob.

[179]

You have it easy up there. Here in NC I sometimes get stopped twice in one outing of fishing. I will be stopped on the waterway inspected, then again at the ramp. In all the fishing I have done in RI I was never once stopped.

If I were you I would just pay the $50.00 in a way I think the officer is right you need working nav lights on your boat at all times.

[Hooper]

Originally Posted by Gunpowder

you wanna be an officer in shrewsbury? we need more like you

LOL!

I don't think I'd find a better place to work than where I'm at right now, can't believe I've been there 14 years now....

[MarshCappa]

Definetly appeal.

[Slipknot]

http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/90b-5.htm

I didn't realize even my 11 ft skiff needs lights


Chapter 90B: Section 5. Classes of motorboats; required lighting, signaling and fire extinguishing and control devices

Section 5. (a) Motorboats subject to the provisions of this chapter shall be divided into four classes as follows:—

Class A. Less than sixteen feet in length.

Class 1. Sixteen feet or over and less than twenty-six feet in length.

Class 2. Twenty-six feet or over and less than forty feet in length.

Class 3. Forty feet or over.

(b) Every motorboat in all weathers from sunset to sunrise shall carry and exhibit the following lights when underway, and during such time no other lights which may be mistaken for those prescribed shall be exhibited.

(1) Every motorboat of classes A and 1 shall carry the following lights:—

First. A bright white light aft to show all around the horizon.

Second. A combined lantern in the fore part of the vessel and lower than the white light aft, showing green to starboard and red to port, so fixed as to throw the light from right ahead to two points abaft the beam on their respective sides.


I guess he was worried about your safety Bob
They have seatbelt laws for the same reason
but you have a point, a warning might have been the way to go.

[MrHunters]

Originally Posted by Uncle Matt

How many people here bitch when they see officers doing nothing and not doing "their jobs?" I wouldn't call an officer doing a safety check wasteing your time as it was so eloquently put.
***
Bob I would look into into the law and then appeal it. Go have your say. Maybe in the end it will be dismissed. Either way, he was doing his job and trying to enforce the boating safety laws. I don't know how many people call that being a fool.
***
Good luck Bob.

i have to agree. they are just doing their job. now the annoying part is you got a cash fine for it, where a warning would be more than sufficient. I had the same attitdue my first check ever.

Now my only gripe is with myself now, and how much of a nervous nelly i am which immediatly makes me look guilty of something even though im 95% sure everything is in order.

[beamie]

That EPO is citing State Law not US CFR.

Says right in the Mass Law..... sunset to sunrise.....when did he cite you?????

Written informative warning should have been suffient.

appeal!!

[Got Stripers]

My bitch isn't that he cited me, it's that I DIDN'T legally need to display them, it was noon on a day with miles of visibility. I think he could have made his point with a warning, if legally I needed to have them on the boat. The laws are in place for one reason SAFETY and my point to him which he ignored is that, for SAFETY reasons I never winter fish when I will legally need to display nav lights. That was my explaination as to why I don't clutter a storage craved boat with %$%$%$%$ I'll never use.

Laws serve a very important purpose, but the smarter officers be it EP, State or town; look at the circumstances and act accordingly. This guy I swear was just bored and looking to fill his day or get started on his yearly citation quota.

[Slipknot]

Days are short in winter Bob, maybe if you had a breakdown and were still out in the dark you would have to use the lights to be seen, that might be a point of needing them on the boat. You never know, I guess you have to be prepared. Maybe it's the wording, display means have them on, maybe the law isn't clear enough to state that the lights have to also be in the boat at all times, I don't know.
grump away hardcore fishermen pay the price for bored epo guys in the winter I guess, time to go

[Bill L]

b) Every motorboat in all weathers from sunset to sunrise shall carry and exhibit the following

You got screwed, you aren't requied to have them during the day. Sure it's good to have them in case you get stranded past sunset, and at that point the fine would apply, but you shouln't have gotten the fine during the day

[Bob Senior]

Hey 179; how's NC???

It's a new world up here. I've been ramp checked by EP--four times, water checked by CG three times, and road checked by SKPD once, all within the last two seasons. Prior to that I had not been checked once by anyone.

I must suddenly look like a water criminal or something.

[179]

Hey Bob,
Doing well here looking forward to the warm up. I really haven't been fishing lately as the inshore action is pretty slow right now and the offshore is just beginning. I am hoping to head out for some Tuna in the next two weeks. Looking forward to spending a couple weeks at the summer cottage in Charlestown in July.

[Monty]

I put my boat in Sunday and went fishing for flounder Monday, I was going across Hull gut around the back side of Peddocks island when the Environmental police in a rigid inflatable pulled me over.

They were very cordial, asked if I caught anything obviously to make sure I'm not poaching, they checked my registration and life vests and were on their way.

This was the 2nd time in 15 years I've been stopped by anyone, yesterday mainly because I was the only one out. I can understand your frustration but I guess it's the way things will be with the home land security situation.

Oh yea, if your wondering all we caught was skates, no limit on those!

Regards, Monty.

[dogman91]

What really gets me about this whole thing is how you can be down on the beach, and the cambodians/hispanics/ whatever they are keep every single striper they catch, be it 10" or be it 20". But yet the bust the balls of the responsible guys right?

[Raven]

i think your post will go a long way for other boaters to take heed and make sure that all of their equipment is in perfect order.
thanks for the warning... yes appeal -> as you were just testing the boat out right? BOB?

[Swimmer]

Just so that you know when you appeal the citation the EPO is going to say that the lights have to be available to the captain twenty-fours hours a day at the flick of a switch, because he is going to say that the weather in New England can get nasty in just a few minutes.

Appeal it.....of course like Hooper said, and the best way to do so is to be ever so humble and just simply ask for a break. Thats what I tell my relatives when they have got tickets. Good luck with it. Was this in Mass? Never have seen and EPO do a safety check. Coast Guard yes, but not a Mass. EPO.

[Slipknot]

I emailed the director
and this was the reply I got

" The law only applies during the night or reduced visibility times."


I take that to mean you should not have gotten a ticket since it was a clear day. You should appeal it Bob.

[planter]

Appeal it.. EP cop may get a private duty call and just blow off the court date like so many of out friends in blue. I bet if he looked he could have found a few herring poachers but he might have had to get out of his truck for that..

[Raider Ronnie]

Originally Posted by Uncle Matt

How many people here bitch when they see officers doing nothing and not doing "their jobs?" I wouldn't call an officer doing a safety check wasteing your time as it was so eloquently put.
***
Bob I would look into into the law and then appeal it. Go have your say. Maybe in the end it will be dismissed. Either way, he was doing his job and trying to enforce the boating safety laws. I don't know how many people call that being a fool.
***
Good luck Bob.

I agree with this post.
While I think the fine was not called for (he should have given a warning) I'll guarantee memorial day weekend there will some tragedy of a boat going down, either over loaded, no life jackets, no vhf, no working bildge pump, someone going out in a small boat in rough conditions when they should not, ect.....
And then there are the boaters who can't seem to remember or care about the safety gear, but never forget the booze before leaving the dock.
And when that happens not only are the boat owners putting themselves and passengers in danger, they put the EP, coast guard, rescuers, ect.... in danger!
Personally,
I think you going out on "a blustery 38 degree day" in a small boat would cause concern with me if I was the ep officer.

[Got Stripers]

Had my hearing and scratch one $50 ticket and I enjoyed rubbing the EP's printed rules in his face.

[likwid]

Originally Posted by Got Stripers

I enjoyed rubbing the EP's printed rules in his face.

I hope you really didn't rub it in his face, because now you got someone who's gonna take his time if he hears you ever need help.

[daceman63]

I'm glad you beat your ticket.

Having said that, the best way to approach anything is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. You never know what surprises boating can throw your way. The best was to ensure you are prepared is to follow the rules, keep your equipment updated and get a free coast guard auxilary inspection each year. I do my inspection and make sure everything is working correctly and then they do their. At the very least they give excellent tips and information and updates to safety regualtion and reminders of existing ones. All these guys are boaters too looking out for the safety of all. On top of that it inly takes about 20 minutes and when you get pulled over usually one glance at that sticker and you get a wave and a "have a nice day".....

You mentioned you are an inland waterway boater....they have a nice safety course geared toward that style of boating as well.

IMO the cop was doing his job and although he may have gotten his point across with a warning, he most assuredly got your attention with the ticket.

Even though your explanation that you don't need your lights during the day is true it won't cover you for the "what if". I have a jack and a spare in my car. I don't have any flat tires. But then if I don't have that equipment "what if"....

[Got Stripers]

Originally Posted by daceman63

I'm glad you beat your ticket.

Having said that, the best way to approach anything is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. You never know what surprises boating can throw your way. The best was to ensure you are prepared is to follow the rules, keep your equipment updated and get a free coast guard auxilary inspection each year. I do my inspection and make sure everything is working correctly and then they do their. At the very least they give excellent tips and information and updates to safety regualtion and reminders of existing ones. All these guys are boaters too looking out for the safety of all. On top of that it inly takes about 20 minutes and when you get pulled over usually one glance at that sticker and you get a wave and a "have a nice day".....

You mentioned you are an inland waterway boater....they have a nice safety course geared toward that style of boating as well.

IMO the cop was doing his job and although he may have gotten his point across with a warning, he most assuredly got your attention with the ticket.

Even though your explanation that you don't need your lights during the day is true it won't cover you for the "what if". I have a jack and a spare in my car. I don't have any flat tires. But then if I don't have that equipment "what if"....

You obviously don't winter striper fish by boat. For "safety" reasons (my own), which is partly what the regs are all about, I don't plan winter fishing trips after the sun goes down, during rainy weather and I can't even remember a foggy winter day fishing. I tried to make that point at the time he wrote me up, but he wanted to strut his stuff. Trust me, I have everthing I need to be safe, spare clothes should someone go in, life jackets which I insist guests wear, kill switch clipped on.

This EP officer wrote me up for a violation I didn't commit and I took great pleasure in pointing that out, using their own printed manual as evidence.

[MTC]

USCG Inland rules state 7 meters and under 7 knots all you need is an all around light shown in time to prevent a collision Rule 23 ii page 48