Disappointing Observation:

I have always had positive interactions with marine law enforcement and the coast guard. They were very considerate and professional in Delaware. The DC harbor patrol and MPD police boats are always friendly. The Coast Guard is not out to make friends in DC waters and they are always watching and will randomly stop people but if your in compliance and don't mouth off you can deal with them quickly. The only time I ever had a problem was on the Cacapon river in West Virginia. Game warden saw me in my Gheenoo in about 8" of water and wrote me a $185 ticket for not having a pfd. I did have 2 type 4 throable cusions and my jacket had blown out of the truck but I figured I wouldn't drown in a calm river with a max depth of 4 feet and who will see me. He was the most offensive a hole I have ever dealt with. Not just the calling me boy and stupid thing. He had the nerve to tell me he was ticketing me because WV is "big on safety." Meanwhile he waves at some guy going by in a kayak without a pfd. I ask what about him? He said his boat didn't have a motor. WTF does an electric motor have to do with me drowning? Bad cop. Very bad wanna be cop with a power complex and redneck attitude.
 
We used to boat on the Hudson a lot, then they started stoping boats a lot. There's a billion agencies on the Hudson and it's not uncommon to be stopped multiple times a day by different agencies. We stopped cruising the hudson and let the places we visited know why we stopped going there. They are putting pressure on their local agencies to lighten up, we'll see if it works. I agree that many are trying to justify their worth as budgets are slashed.
 
Had a great experience with the Suffolk Country Marine Police here on LI. I was out crusing and I blew out my prop hub and had no propulsion. As chance would have it, a SCPD boat was cruisng by and just out of reaction I flagged him down. Not only did he have pegged what happened to my boat he and his partner towed me all the way to my marina. We chatted the whole time about the local waters and some stories he had. Great guy!!
 
spfortjohn said:
You are correct, I boat in Orange Beach and the Alabama Marine Police are for the most part polite but the Orange Beach Water Police are total jerks. They are not nice if you happen to speak with them on the dock or if they stop you. I am for being safe on the water but they take it to an extreme. We have an island that everybody goes to and they ride around that island all day looking for people who might be drinking. For the record I do not drink on the boat. If they would just sit in cotton bayou and get all the people who run the no wake zone in front of my condo they could make all the money they need to buy a new boat every year. I know they have a job to do but it is not all bad who gets paid to ride around on a boat all day not a bad gig if you can get it...
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I agree with you on the Alabama Marine Police they are great guys. We had the twin outboard police boat stop my friend and I that lives in Pensacola in his 38 Fountain. These guys hate go fast boats especially the Orange Beach crew. They have stopped us coming in from the Perdido Pass and Ole River on the same weekend. OB water patrol yelled at him while docking at Tacky's ( our favorite lunch spot) claiming the exhaust was too loud. I have noticed they have gotten worse over the past five years and even worse is the holidays....we have learned to stay away from the island at Perdido Pass it's just not worth the hassle and I love that place. My neighbor and I take the CC out for a cruise they never mess with us. We hardly ever have any issues in Fl waters at all.
 
I do all of my boating in the Ft. Lauderdale intracoastal area and I can tell you there are many, many Captain Budweiser’s out there every weekend, so I do appreciate the police presence. Having said that, they can go a long way towards improving their image by issuing warnings. I was cruising just north of Lauderdale with 3 or more vessels passing me, when I increased speed, just to stay in line, I get pulled over. No warning, even though I asked, just a ticket. They were rude and all full of themselves. There is no talking to these guys. It has gotten a lot worse in recent years.
 
I guess perspective is everything. I live in Mobile, AL and over the last three summers have regularly (several times each summer) trailered our boat over to the Orange Beach, AL / Perdido Key, FL area which is less than an hour and a half away to boat on the ICW and other coastal waterways.

I have never had any type of run in with the Florida or Alabama water patrol (or the Coast Guard for that matter) and I've never felt targeted or unwanted. I do know an Alabama Marine Police Officer as a friend of a friend kind of thing and I know what a load of crap he has to put up with on the job so I always try to be extra polite and respectful when I interact with them. I am not arguing that your observation isn't accurate, but just putting in another data point for consideration. Maybe if there is "profiling" going on it is directed at certain types of boats?

Now my friend who on his very first trip in his new (used) boat got pulled over in Alabama and inspected and got a $186 ticket for failing to have his kill switch in place might disagree. He would agree he committed the offense but he showed the officer his registration which was dated the day before hoping he could get just a warning but didn't. It was a rookie mistake as the kill switch was sitting there right below the throttle but he neglected to attach it.
 
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beernutz said:
I
Now my friend who on his very first trip in his new (used) boat got pulled over in Alabama and inspected and got a $186 ticket for failing to have his kill switch in place might disagree. He would agree he committed the offense but he showed the officer his registration which was dated the day before hoping he could get just a warning but didn't. It was a rookie mistake as the kill switch was sitting there right below the throttle but he neglected to attach it.
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Rookie mistake- YES. One that could also kill or injure himself and any others that happen to share the waterway with him if he got tossed out of the boat- YES
 
I've never heard of a stop switch law. I understand on a jetski but in a runabout? Must be a local thing.
 
My brother is a cop, a part time sheriff's deputy and works lake security to boot. He says most times people dig their own hole with the first words spoken when stopped.

They have a reason to stop you, that's a fact. How you react to that stop will often make or break how it turns out.

There are some A.H. cops that's a fact. But from my experiance and what my brother tells me if your first words are "Hello officer what can I do for you" it goes a long way towards making it a better experiance.

In his words, If you want a ticket, "argue". They don't have to cut you a break, you mouth off or treat them like they're jerks and I promise you this. TICKET. Cha ching.... $$

They deal with jerks all day long. It's a breath of fresh air to them when they run into
someone that is polite and treats them with respect. That's from my brother. He's sitting here :eek:)
 
mysticowner said:
My brother is a cop, a part time sheriff's deputy and works lake security to boot. He says most times people dig their own hole with the first words spoken when stopped.

They have a reason to stop you, that's a fact. How you react to that stop will often make or break how it turns out.

There are some A.H. cops that's a fact. But from my experiance and what my brother tells me if your first words are "Hello officer what can I do for you" it goes a long way towards making it a better experiance.

In his words, If you want a ticket, "argue". They don't have to cut you a break, you mouth off or treat them like they're jerks and I promise you this. TICKET. Cha ching.... $$

They deal with jerks all day long. It's a breath of fresh air to them when they run into
someone that is polite and treats them with respect. That's from my brother. He's sitting here :eek:)
Click to expand...

While I agree with you that politeness and respect go a very long way I also agree with you that there are some LEOs who are on a power or some other kind of trip. As I said about my friend who got the ticket, he is THE most polite person I know and it was his very first day on the water. I got a traffic ticket a few months ago for doing something I absolutely did not do. But I was riding in a convertible with my tall blond daughter next to me and I think in retrospect that the officer just wanted to be a prick. Or maybe he had a quota to fill or both. I still respect LEOs and the sh*t job they do and the sh*t people they deal with daily but the asspipes in their midst only make it harder for the rest of them. </soapbox>
 
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