Coast Guard To Launch SoCal Crackdown On Drunk Boaters
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — The U.S. Coast Guard will be out patrolling the waters off the California coast starting this weekend in a major crackdown aimed at intoxicated boaters.
Patrols will be looking for telltale signs of drunken boating such as erratic driving, speeding through "no wake" zones, and coming too close to other vessels as part of "Operation Dry Water".
KNX 1070's Ron Kilgore reports the Guard will use tactics similar to that of police officers pulling over drivers they suspect to be under the influence of alcohol.
Podcast
"Starting by doing our safety inspection of their safety gear, and then if we see indicators while we're on board of someone who's intoxicated, such as empty beer cans, the way they're acting", then those drivers will be detained, said Coast Guard Petty Officer Nick Kimose.
The Guard will then turn over suspects to local police for any possible charges and arrests.
Any stop that results in an arrest could also mean demerits on a violator's official driving record.
