RBTs on the water

[the gecko]

Im just wondering how water police handle things when theyve got a bloke pulled up for drink driving on the water?

Do they tow the boat back somewhere? They wouldnt want it at their own HQ, and they wouldnt want to take it to the ramp it came from? They cant just leave it anchored up where it stands for 24 hrs.....Do they have an obligation to minimise risk to the boat?

Dont worry, I dont take grog on the water myself, so Im not the one whos worried. All I drink is water and caffiene drinks.

Ive often wondered what happens if a bloke gets pulled up on the way home from the ramp. Does his boat have to sit on the road all night while he goes to jail? If you are solo, they cant just give you a ticket and send you home.

Before you start :), I applaud the good job that the water police do. Im just curious.

cheers
Andrew

[Murks]

Good point mate...interesting in a solo situation or what if all the deckies were over the limit too
Brett
PS; I'm with you in the drink department..at best I may have one beer but I leave it to the deckies to enjoy and I focus on being safe on the water and keeping my eyes open for the ones that may be drinking

[Bob H]

they usually get another officer to take it to the holding yard at their station or get racq to tow it to their yard.........bob

[Grunter71]

Ive often wondered what happens if a bloke gets pulled up on the way home from the ramp. Does his boat have to sit on the road all night while he goes to jail? If you are solo, they cant just give you a ticket and send you home.


cheers
Andrew

I have seen cars at an RBT site the following morning,so i presume, if you do get caught and don't have anyone else to drive it home for you , that is where it stays. Don't know about boats though.

[the gecko]

Sounds like they would have to tow the boat, if they caught you on the water solo. Thats gonna take a lot of time out of thier day, if they are one hour away from base. That makes it a 2-3 hr round trip to get back to their main zone (if they were at Tipplers or Pin?). I cant see them letting anyone off tho.....

Andrew

[trueblue]

they usually get another officer to take it to the holding yard at their station or get racq to tow it to their yard.........bob

hmmmmmm. RACQ??

[Dignity]

Last year down near tipplers the driver was booked late afternoon and the next morning his boat was still there high and dry as the tide had gone out so figured the police weren't going to tow it or one of his passengers was going to drive it back the next day. They were htere for an afternoon trip only so the passengers must have decided to book in at tipplers for the night, expensive afternoon.

[Fish Guts]

i dont think theres an obligation to tow the vessel. im not sure on the Police boat setup, possibly the bigger vessels (17m patrol) based up north would be able to process the driver on the spot (being equipped with a BAS machine and certified operator) without having to take the driver back to the station for a breath analysis specimen. they woudlnt impound the boat or car unless it was involved in an accident. trust me its hard enough for police to obtain authorisation for a tow of a vehicle let alone a boat. So with the brisbane based Police boats id guess that theyd bring the driver back and leave the boat upto someone else to get it. Either way, a very costly exercise to be drink driving on the water

[Scott nthQld]

......................

[Shagga]

Is it true that if you get caught over the limit in your boat it is your car licence that ia suspended?

[the gecko]

Yes shagga they are linked. Also if you get pulled over driving, then your boat licence gets suspended too.

[hodges4]

As far as I know it's like vehicles. They are left there. Their attitude, rightly so, is you should have thought about that before you put yourself over the limit.

[Dignity]

As far as I know it's like vehicles. They are left there. Their attitude, rightly so, is you should have thought about that before you put yourself over the limit.

I guess if you are over the limit then you can't legally sign a waiver for towing so the vehicle has to stay.

[JawstheOriginal]

Anyone who drinks and drives is an idiot. On the water or the road. I have a family member who has permanent injuries because of some idiot on the water.
Stay safe people...

[Gorms83]

I'm in a boat that doesnt require me to have a licence.

I dont drink on the water though im still curious what the legal limit is?? .02?

[bushbeachboy]

Gorms it's .05.

[oldboot]

Hmm...... a lot of people don't realise that they can get done for DUI driving a vehicle that does not require a licence.

You most certainly can get done for DUI on a bicycle, a wheel chair, and scateboard. there have been incidents of all three in the media in the last few years.
Bicycles, scateboards ans such now have a specific status under traffic law they are now RWV ( recreational wheeled vehicles).

Basicly if it has wheels and it conveys humans or goods, if you are caught in charge of it on the road ( this includes footpaths and public car parks) you can get done for DUI..... Don't know about a shopping trolly::) .



So it is reasonable to expect you clould get done for DUI in a row boat, on a wind surfer or for that matter a surf board.

If you get done for DUI in one of these unlikly vehicles it will still impact on your ability to hold or get a drivers licence.

For those who arent aware
for most people .05BAC can be as little as 3 full strength beers in an hour and 1 an hour there after. For some small women it could be 2 full strength beers in an hour and 1 every 90 miniutes after will keep them over the limit.

Here's another one
You can have a few beers and shortly after blow well under .05.......however half an hour later you could be well over the limit having not drunk any more.

Of course we all know you can have a heavy night on the turps, go to bed at midnight and still be well over the limit at 10am the following day.

This grog is sneeky stuff.

cheers

[Outsider1]

You can also get done for DUI whilst riding a horse!! As you say, any type of transport on a public thoroughfare.

Cheers

Dave

[Stan53]

In Queensland it is .05. Looks like I was a bit slow replying ;D

[Scott nthQld]

...................

[Fish Guts]

yeah if your on your p's , and other restricted licenses its .02 (even learners) although its advertised as a ZERO limit, you are allowed .02 and under on such restricted licenses. the guys on wheelschairs, horses ect ect are actually charged with UIL, regardless if reading is over .05 and under .149 ( UIL is classed for readings .149 and over) which is a higher charge than say going over the general alcohol limit (.05 - .149) and legislation stipulates (not that it doesnt happen) but people done on bicylces, horses ect cannot be road side breath tested, so the police have to go on indicia (signs , symptoms) - so you have to be showing it that you've had a heap. if you showed all the signs and symptoms youd be taken to the station for a bas readout.

[BrewGuru]

okay, I gotta question, being in my old girl, I have done my days fishing, cruise into Yellow Patch, off Moreton, anchor up for the night and have a couple of wines with dinner, can I get done? What about the houseboat holidayers, anchored up for the night and a couple of beers, can they get done?

[Tangles]

Mate of mine once got done for the following about 20 years ago and wouldnt happen now but there you go,

Drove home on the freeway, car broke down, called tow truck, being pissed he insisted on staying in the car while it was being towed home,, the old type where it lifted up the front wheels... anyway the towie was weaving down the freeway and got pulled up by the police who discovered my mate in the towed car behind the wheel doing pretend turns with the wheel,,, booked and done for DD..

funniest part he was a lawyer... true story... doubt it would happen today

mike

[oldboot]

If you are at anchor you are still in charge of a vehicle.


From what I understand... you are in charge of a boat if it is on the water.... unless it is made fast to the shore or you are at a designated mouring........I don't know if at anchor at a marked small craft mouring qualifies.

cheers

[tae4551]

as far as i am concerned it's not worth having a drink and being in charge of anything. saying this i just spent the last 3 months inside the big house for a 1st offence drink driving conviction of 0.053. but then again i have no respect for the law or so i was told by a judge that just lost his daughter to a drink driver.

[disorderly]

as far as i am concerned it's not worth having a drink and being in charge of anything. saying this i just spent the last 3 months inside the big house for a 1st offence drink driving conviction of 0.053. but then again i have no respect for the law or so i was told by a judge that just lost his daughter to a drink driver.

??????.......

[Alchemy]

okay, I gotta question, being in my old girl, I have done my days fishing, cruise into Yellow Patch, off Moreton, anchor up for the night and have a couple of wines with dinner, can I get done? What about the houseboat holidayers, anchored up for the night and a couple of beers, can they get done?

As Oldboot says, you need to tied to an approved mooring. In the case of the houseboat operators (business owners) some have approved moorings which are located out and about and are designated for their businesses use only. I guess they have paid for these or pay an annual fee for this privilege? There are a number of these in Kauri creek for example.

One night a few years ago we tied up to one of these as they were all vacant. It was blowing a good 30kn, straight from across the creek. It was great knowing that we weren't going to drag the pick that night and that we could have a few beers without getting done. (the night of the approved mooring still gets talked about::)).

Regards,
Dave.

[oldboot]

as far as i am concerned it's not worth having a drink and being in charge of anything. saying this i just spent the last 3 months inside the big house for a 1st offence drink driving conviction of 0.053. but then again i have no respect for the law or so i was told by a judge that just lost his daughter to a drink driver.

BH... with your luck I wouldn't be buying any raffle tickets.

I can say I have heard of many stories where people genuinely thaught they were well under the limit and fine to drive.........but get a very unpleasant surprise followed by a lot more exercise.

QLD now also has roadside drug tests....... I notice that they have chosen a very limited range of drugs that are reasonably consistent to test for.......but as technology progresses, I recon they will test for more.

Lots of the illicit drugs remain active and detectable in the blood stream for very long periods in comparison to alcahol

I have been told by a reliable source that they can detect "weed" in the bloodstream over 14 days after consumption.

cheers

[the gecko]

Yep, grass does hold in the fat cells of the body and can be detected for up to 14 days by blood test, but only a day or so by saliva test. ATM only the full booze bus carries the saliva test according to an RACQ article, and there are only 2 full booze buses active in SE Qld, but it will be increased so that every cop car and water police carries the dope kit eventually :o. Right now, theres nothing to stop them taking you back for a blood test if they suspect somethings up.

Yes, a skipper of a houseboat could technically be charged, but I think theres a bit of commonsense by cops if you are anchored in a spot that wont require you to move. Ive never seen a water police on the water after dark on the GC. Has anyone else?

As we now know, being in charge of any vehicle while drunk is an offence. The definition of being in charge, is 'having the keys in your possession'. If you see an RBT and get the chance to pull the car over and go for a walk in the other direction, it pays to lock your own keys in your car boot, walk home and come back tomorrow with a spare set of keys. That way you cant be picked up walking down the road and charged with being in possession while drunk. Not that Im in favour of drink driving myself, but if a mate remembers this tip, it may help;).

Gees, 3 mths jail for just over .05 first offence, surely you could appeal the severity of the sentence based on precedents? Thats incredibly tough and out of proportion with other cases. I didnt think a judge could get away with that.

Andrew

[oldboot]

As matter of interest, I notice that there is an item in the news at the moment concerning a colision between two bicycles up the coast.........one of them has been charged with DUI.

cheers

[oldboot]

And another one......I hear on the news this morning... a man in Mount Isa has been charged with " attempting to put in motion a horse whilst under the influence of alcahol"...... aparant'y he blew something like .1+.

It was in the main street and he was trying to ride it.

Also... seems they have specificaly framed an offence to cover things other than getting on and riding the horse........ so I imagine that if you whacked a horse on the rump and it took off up the street and you were under the influence... they have something to charge you with.

cheers

[White Pointer]

Police have the same obligations as the rest of us. If there isn't an alternative sober licensed driver of the boat they have to take charge of it. If they incur costs you pay - or you don't get your boat back.

If there are kids on board they assume responsibility for their safety.

The moral in all this is booze and boats (and cars) don't mix. The only safe level is zero. Even if you are anchored up or sitting on your mooring you are in charge of the vessel and have to be sober.

Let's see if we can set a better example on the water than we seem to do on the roads. Now there's an AUSFISH challenge!

White Pointer

[Dignity]

White Pointer, agree with all you say, I used to belong to a club and we camped at South Straddie. There was always someone sober to be in charge of the boats in case of such technicalitiies even though we generally didn't neeed it as we got on with and supported the police over the years and were pretty responsible overall. We'd seen too many accidents with sober drivers let alone drink ones and the sober ones are getting worse. Is it too easy to get a boat licence these days, seems you only need to spend an hour on the water and you have one. I know a couple of girls in the office that decided they needed one and that was all it took and they had no previous experience.

[PinHead]

Police have the same obligations as the rest of us. If there isn't an alternative sober licensed driver of the boat they have to take charge of it. If they incur costs you pay - or you don't get your boat back.

If there are kids on board they assume responsibility for their safety.

The moral in all this is booze and boats (and cars) don't mix. The only safe level is zero. Even if you are anchored up or sitting on your mooring you are in charge of the vessel and have to be sober.

Let's see if we can set a better example on the water than we seem to do on the roads. Now there's an AUSFISH challenge!

White Pointer

if you are on a fixed mooring eg marina berth..you do not have to be under 0.05.

[PaulMark]

okay, I gotta question, being in my old girl, I have done my days fishing, cruise into Yellow Patch, off Moreton, anchor up for the night and have a couple of wines with dinner, can I get done? What about the houseboat holidayers, anchored up for the night and a couple of beers, can they get done?BrewGuru,we've had a houseboat on the Broadwater a few times,and Yes,you can be charged if your over the limit.You get a walkthrough before you leave the Marina and they tell you to make sure someone remains sober or designated driver if you like. Even though you don't need a boat licence,which is a little perplexing::) cos the big square slabsided things are a bugger in the wind.(top fishing platform though)you really need a bit of nous.You get hit on your drivers licence,we had boat licences so the buck stops here.
Paulo.

[bassfan]

Interesting thread, and some personal experiences (not all good). In NSW, if you are anchored in your vessel, then the 0.05 limit does not apply. So the various houseboats etc are fine to indulge without fear of the law IF they don't move the vessel from anchor.
Getting totally pissed whilst at anchor may not be illegal, but it sure is stupid and potentially life threatening if something does go wrong.

BF

[Horse]

Interesting thread, and some personal experiences (not all good). In NSW, if you are anchored in your vessel, then the 0.05 limit does not apply. So the various houseboats etc are fine to indulge without fear of the law IF they don't move the vessel from anchor.
Getting totally pissed whilst at anchor may not be illegal, but it sure is stupid and potentially life threatening if something does go wrong.

BF

That certainly does not apply in QLD. The moment the vessel leaves its permanent mooring you are in charge and need to be under .05. Conditions change rapidly on the water and the skipper may need to react. Anchoring does not exempt you from these responsibilities

[BigChiefBarra]

Fully agree

[trueblue]

And another one......I hear on the news this morning... a man in Mount Isa has been charged with " attempting to put in motion a horse whilst under the influence of alcahol"...... aparant'y he blew something like .1+.

It was in the main street and he was trying to ride it.

Also... seems they have specificaly framed an offence to cover things other than getting on and riding the horse........ so I imagine that if you whacked a horse on the rump and it took off up the street and you were under the influence... they have something to charge you with.

cheers

I can think of a few streets in the Isa where that just would not have looked out of place...

[TheRealAndy]

That certainly does not apply in QLD. The moment the vessel leaves its permanent mooring you are in charge and need to be under .05. Conditions change rapidly on the water and the skipper may need to react. Anchoring does not exempt you from these responsibilities

I totally agree Horse. What happens if you start dragging anchor? A big wind comes up starts taking you toward the bar? What if your drunken mate decides to go for a swin when there is a strong run out? There is plenty of other good reasons for having at least one sober person on an anchored boat, even moreso if you are not familiar with the area.