Boating Under the Influence (B.U.I.)
A Boating Under the Influence (BUI) charge is Georgia’s waterborne equivalent to a Driving Under the Influence (DUI) charge. Like a DUI charge in Georgia, BUI’s carry heavy fines and mandatory conditions to weigh you down upon a finding of guilt.
The 5 BUI Charges
Under Georgia BUI law, there are five potential ways to be in violation of the statute that will expose you to criminal penalties. It is illegal to operate a vessel on Georgia’s waterways if you:
- Are less safe to operate the vessel due to alcohol consumption
- Are less safe to operate the vessel due to consumption of any drug
- Are less safe to operate the vessel due to the combined effect of alcohol and drugs
- Have a blood alcohol content of .10 or higher within three hours of operating a vessel
- Are less safe to operate the vessel due to marijuana or controlled substance consumption
Georgia’s BUI laws are very similar to Georgia’s DUI laws, illegalizing the less safe operation of your vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and or drugs. In order to pursue a BUI case, Georgia police officers, Sheriffs, and DNR officers will frequently use a lot of the same tests used in a DUI investigation. If suspected of a BUI, you are very likely to be asked to submit to field sobriety testing, to include taking tests like the “Finger to Nose” test, counting and/or reciting your alphabet tests, and horizontal gaze nystagmus test. For more information on these tests, click here.
Like a Georgia DUI prosecution, a successful BUI prosecution depends on the officer’s ability to convey to the judge, prosecutor, and potentially jury how you were under the influence and how it lessened your ability to safely operate your boat. The officer will be gathering incriminating evidence from the moment he lays eyes on your boat, until you are in cuffs, back at the local jail, and turned over to the jail facility staff. With today’s technology advances, it is also not uncommon to see officers carrying video cameras and microphones to record every second of your encounter- certainly this is an effort to build an airtight BUI case that ends in your quick “guilty” plea. However, like DUI cases, a BUI case is subject to scrutiny and must be defended competently and aggressively.
Implied Consent
If you take a chemical test (usually a breath or blood test) at the demand of your arresting officer and blow over a .10, or simply refuse to take the test required, your privileges to operate your boat on Georgia’s waterways will be suspended. Under Georgia’s BUI Implied Consent Law, all people boating in Georgia are deemed to have given consent to have chemical tests conducted at any time, in an effort to determine if you are under the influence. While you do have the option to refuse testing, refusing under Georgia’s BUI implied consent law will have your privileges to boat in Georgia suspended for twelve months, and you are not able to apply for any early reinstatement of your privileges, with no exceptions.
If you do elect to take the officer’s chemical test, and you have not had another BUI charge in the previous 5 years, you will usually be eligible to apply for your boating privileges after at least 30 days have passed. In effect, you may get your privileges back sooner, in exchange for giving the officer his most damaging piece of evidence against you to prove his BUI case. If you do elect to take a breath or blood test, it is essential to have an attorney with the resources and professional contacts that will enable your defense to analyze and attack the accuracy of the state’s testing.
10 day Rule
If you are arrested for a BUI and the officer serves you with a notice to suspend your privileges at the time of arrest, or if the Department of Natural Resources sends you certified mail informing you that your privileges to operate your boat will be suspended, you only have 10 days to challenge this suspension. If you fail to send the proper letter, in correct form and in the prescribed manner within the 10 day window, you have forfeited your right to challenge the inevitable suspension of your privilege to operate your boat in Georgia. Unlike a DUI charge in Georgia, under Georgia’s BUI laws, your privileges to boat are suspended immediately- there is no requirement that you have a hearing on the issue first. If you have refused testing, and fail to send the 10 day letter, you will not be able to legally boat in Georgia for one year. If you did submit to testing, the period of suspension will range from 30 days to twelve months on a first charge within five years. It is critical to contact an attorney who knows how to deal with the department and take swift action to fight for your boating privileges after a BUI arrest.
Suspicion to Stop your Boat
In automobile DUI cases, an officer must have a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity to stop your vehicle (except in some roadblock situations). This is a Constitution protection afforded to all motorists. However, on Georgia’s waterways, safety checks are permitted on boats without any probable cause or reasonable suspicion at all. It is extremely common for a routine safety inspection to turn into a BUI arrest in Georgia. With this said, it is important to keep your vessel in compliance with all applicable ordinances. If you are flagged for a safety check, its best to be polite and cooperative, yet do not volunteer too much information- simply let the officer do his check and move on to the next vessel. Suspicious behavior, even by your passengers, will almost always extend the scope of the ‘safety check’.
Child Endangerment
If you have a child or children under the age of 14 on your boat, and are arrested for BUI charges, you will likely also face child endangerment charges under Georgia Law. Under Georgia’s law, the child endangerment charges will not get dismissed, or merge into the BUI charges you are facing. You are therefore exposed to separate misdemeanor charges, and facing 12 months imprisonment and a $1,000.00 fine on each child endangerment charge. Georgia treats three or more child endangerment charges as a felony, punishable by up to three years in jail with a $5,000.00 fine. Oftentimes, your attorney’s negotiations in this type of case must focus on mitigating the child endangerment charges, in an effort to expose you to less potential jail and probation time.
Reckless Operation
Georgia law defines “reckless operation” of a vessel as operating your boat in a reckless disregard for the safety of persons or property. This statute is very broad, and can encompass many types of behavior or actions by boaters in Georgia. While a reckless operation charge may involve the payment of a fine and other conditions, it is not an alcohol-related charge necessarily, and can be a tool in the fight to keep your record clean. Additionally, under Georgia law a reckless operation charge does not carry any loss of boating privileges- a plus if your attorney is able to fight your BUI case and possibly secure a reduced plea.
Punishment for BUI Charges
BUI in Georgia is a misdemeanor charge. Unlike the DUI statute, at this time, the BUI law does not make a fourth conviction a felony charge. However, prosecutors in Georgia are still very tough on prosecuting BUI charges. It is common for a BUI plea to carry similar terms to a DUI plea, including fines nearing $1,000.00, the court ordered attendance of a DUI school, a court ordered drug and alcohol abuse evaluation, probation time of twelve or more months, and attendance at various seminars and lectures on the dangers of impaired driving. Fines and costs of classes stemming from a BUI conviction can easily cost over $2,500.00. Additionally, a BUI charge is forever on your Georgia and National criminal record. Once arrested and fingerprinted on BUI charges, the charges are transmitted to the GBI, who will memorialize the BUI on your record, enabling future employers, creditors, law enforcement and government agencies to see the record of your arrest.
