Re: Having your boat searched?
I think that the OP is correct about some things and incorrect about others.
The state of Missouri speaks to the issue of the officer's authority as a "water patrol officer." While the law doesn't specifically state that this includes DNR officers, I doubt very much that it does not. The law is probably written that way to cover DNR and county/local water patrols. What the law states is this:
306.165. Each water patrol officer appointed by the Missouri state water patrol and each of such other employees as may be designated by the patrol, before entering upon his or her duties, shall take and subscribe an oath of office to perform all duties faithfully and impartially, and shall be given a certificate of appointment, a copy of which shall be filed with the secretary of state, granting all the powers of a peace officer to enforce all laws of this state, upon all of the following:
1) The waterways of this state bordering the lands set forth in subdivisions (2), (3), (4), and (5) of this section;
(2) All federal land, where not prohibited by federal law or regulation, and state land adjoining the waterways of this state;
(3) All land within three hundred feet of the areas in subdivision (2) of this section;
(4) All land adjoining and within six hundred feet of any waters impounded in areas not covered in subdivision (2) with a shoreline in excess of four miles;
(5) All land adjoining and within six hundred feet of the rivers and streams of this state;
(6) Any other jurisdictional area, pursuant to the provisions of section 306.167;
(7) All premises leased or owned or under control of the Missouri state water patrol.
Each water patrol officer may board any watercraft at any time, with probable cause, for the purpose of making any inspection necessary to determine compliance with the provisions of this chapter. Each water patrol officer may arrest on view and without a warrant any person he or she sees violating or who such patrol officer has reasonable grounds to believe has violated any law of this state, upon any water or land area subject to his or her jurisdiction as provided in this section or may arrest anyone violating any law in his or her presence throughout the state. Each water patrol officer, while investigating an accident or crime that was originally committed within such patrol officer's jurisdiction, as set forth in this section, may arrest any person who he or she has probable cause to believe has committed such crime, even if the suspect is currently out of the water patrol's jurisdiction. Water patrol officers, if practicable, shall notify the sheriff or the police department prior to making an arrest within their respective county or city. Each water patrol officer shall comply with the training and certification provisions of chapter 590, RSMo.
So, Missouri water patrol officers are, in fact police officers with the usual authority to stop a vessel inspect it, etc., under certain circumstances.
It is also interesting to note that the state of Missouri has a specific law covering refusal to allow inspection, or interference with inspection. As such, I would say that anyone in the state that thinks he/she should say no to a safety inspection, better know the entire set of laws on the matter extremely well. The law is as follows:
306.215. Any person who refuses or interferes with the inspection of any boat or vessel located upon the waters of this state, when such inspection is conducted for the purpose of determining compliance with the provisions of this chapter, shall be guilty of a class B misdemeanor.
(L. 1985 H.B. 280, et al. ? 1)
As for the search, I think the OP is right - in the state of Missouri, it appears that officers must have probable cause. I don't know that I have an opinion on the matter of granting permission to search or not, that could be considered to be universally applicable. In most circumstances I would probably let officers search my boat because there is nothing on it that I care about them seeing. I can see the wisdom in not automatically allowing this, however.
Anyone who reads my posts here knows that I am pretty much a big supporter of marine law enforcement. I think that they do an excellent job 99% of the time, and are a lot more of an enhancement to my boating experience, than they are a detriment to it. That said, giving up the right to be free of unnecessary and inapproriate searches and/or infringement of civil liberties, is usually not a good idea. What I do think I would do if I felt the search was out of line, would be to be very polite about saying no. Something along the lines of "Officer, I would prefer that you not search my boat because I have nothing illegal on it, you have no reason to believe that I do have something illegal, and I would prefer to return to enjoying my day immediately. I do appreciate your checking my vessel for safety, however, and I hope you have a nice day too." I think this makes the point that you won't grant consent in a non confrontational way. But, if the officers insisted on doing a search, I would not interfere and would deal with the issue of probable cause later - its much easier to raise cane if you get to go home right away, than it is if you get yourself arrested for "interfering with an investigation."
As a final note, I don't live in Missouri and haven't boated there, yet I was able to find the information on the state's laws quickly. So many times, I see posts or hear opinions on such things in various places, yet no one seems to actually look the information up. With the advent of the internet, its really simple to do so, and I recommend that people take advantage of that. Its a lot easier to know what you should and should not do, when confronted by law enforcement, if you actually know what the laws are!
PS: As another person who is former Coast Guardsman, I need to stick up for "the guys," so consider these facts:
Today, the Coast Guard will:
?Save 10 lives
?Assist 192 people in distress
?Protect $2.8 million in property
?Interdict 14 illegal migrants at sea
?Conduct 109 search and rescue cases
?Seize $9.6 million worth of illegal drugs
?Educate 502 people in Boating Safety Courses
?Respond to 20 oil and hazardous chemical spills
?Conduct 19 maritime security boardings
Trust those of us who have been there when we say that the CG has better things to do than to harass people. I think its also worth pointing out that, during the time period immediately after Hurricane Katrina, when all the other agencies (local state and federal) were tripping all over themselves trying to figure out what to do, the Guard was already rescuing people in large numbers. They had already taken many steps to immediately implement planned operations, and they were "out there" saving people all day, every day, for many days, getting the job done. I am so proud of "my Coast Guardsmen" (women too) that I could bust. Semper Paratus to all!
