Aug 12, 2009 8:56 pm US/Central
Drunken Boaters Going From Bottle To Throttle
(CBS)
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John Love is just one of the many people that Lake County Police have found operating a watercraft while under the influence of alcohol on the Chain O' Lakes near Antioch.
CBS
Drunk people operating boats can make Illinois lakes and rivers dangerous places. There have been three deaths this year and more than 1,000 arrests over the last five. Now there's an effort to link the tickets boaters get on the water to their Illinois driving record.
Police tell CBS 2 Investigator Dave Savini that it's the best way to stop boaters from going from the bottle to the throttle.
Boating on Illinois' lakes and rivers can get out of control.
"Blow hard. Keep going, no, no, no, no don't suck in," said Lake County Marine Unit Deputy Al Frank to a boat operator on the Chain O' Lakes near Antioch who was about to get busted for operating his watercraft while under the influence of alcohol.
"I am going to ask you to step over on my boat," said Al Frank.
One after another, boat operators are checked and tested by deputies John Simons and Frank.
"Everything we do out here on the water will have no effect on your driver's license whatsoever okay," said Simon.
They showed us the challenges they face keeping boaters safe from their own worst enemy: themselves.
"I messed up, I'll admit to that," said boater Chris Diemer.
Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran said that operating boats while intoxicating is a "recipe for disaster."
Curran is hoping Illinois passes a law that would tie-in a drunk boating arrest to a person's driver's license.
"The likelihood is when they're done here, they are going to be getting behind the wheel of a car and driving somewhere," said Curran.
Authorities say a driver's license tie-in for drunk boaters would create a central database and help them keep better track of repeat offenders.
"You can get the keys with the boat tomorrow," said a police officer to John Love, who they had just ticketed for operating a boat while under the influence.
"No, no the keys to my truck," said John Love.
Drunk boaters fall into the same category as drunk snowmobile and ATV operators and they only face a fine.
Love, 39, told police he was drinking at this floating bar Blarney's Island in Antioch. His field sobriety test came back nearly twice the legal limit and while in handcuffs he even joked with officers about getting another drink.
"I'm going to need a drink after this one guys, you guys are killing me," said Love.
Later at the station, police checked his driving record and said Love has two prior arrests for DUI in a motor vehicle.
"We want to make sure those kind of people are stopped," said Curran.
Just last June on Chain O' Lakes an intoxicated boater crashed and a female passenger was critically injured. Curran says he thinks a law like this could help to save lives.
During his transport back to the station boater Diemer admitted to CBS 2 that he was intoxicated, and said that he wouldn't drive a car if he was drunk.
Diemer says he also has a prior arrest for being drunk and driving an ATV, another recreational vehicle, in Wisconsin, but he says that he won't operate a boat intoxicated again.
Because of our ongoing CBS 2 investigation into intoxicated boating and snowmobiling, there may soon be new laws tying these arrests to a person's driver's license.
Legislation is being worked on in Illinois and Wisconsin. An Illinois bill created by Sen. Chris Lauzen and Rep. Kevin Joyce has already passed the Senate. It also would ban people with active vehicle DUIs from boating or snowmobiling.
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