Officers here are stealthy. Tow boats are more official and better marked than local police boats. Nearly all the law enforcement agencies use 20-26' center console boats. Some police boats have double stipes that run 45-degrees amidships. Most police boats look new and have dark-blue or light-green canvass aluminum tops. The emergency light bar is mouned just under the top. Center console boats are the most common boats used by the general public. Police boats are hard to distinguish.
Jupiter Island Police use a boat that is exceptionally poorly identified. It's a large white center console with a dark blue top, dual outboard engines and miminal side markings. Even if the Jupiter Island Police Boat is right next to you, you may not recognize it as a police boat. Jupiter Island Police also use a medium size royal blue center console that's equally poorly marked. I understand this this their equivalent of an "unmarked police car." However, the lack of markings may leave unsuspecting boaters open to harrassment any nut case with a center console and a flashing blue light.
Also checking boaters along Jupiter Island is the Florida Conservation Commission. I have seen officers in a dark green flats boat with a large outboard motor. THERE ARE NO OFFICIAL MARKINGS ON THIS BOAT WHATSOEVER. The officers wear fishing vests, shorts and no uniforms. The only way you might know it's a police boat is if you happen to see the small blue police strobe light mounted amidships. These officers seem deadly serious and don't even return a friendly wave. They seem particuarly fond of stopping PWCs and boats for minor wake infractions. It's the ultimate unmarked police boat.
Near Peanut Island the Coast Guard patrols in a large rigid inflatable boat, painted bright orange. There is no mistaking their authority.
The Coast Guard operates a station in Lake Park, near the Lake Worth/Palm Beach Inlet. It covers 48 miles of coastline from Boca Raton to the St. Lucie Inlet (and out 30 miles off shore.) The station was locaed on Peanut Island from 1936 through 1995, when it moved ashore at Lake Park. On average each year, the station handles 500 search and resuce calls, saves 600 people and $12 million in property. It's involved with 300 law enforcement situations from drug arrests to migrant smuggling to marine violations.
I've seen local officers be very cool with local boaters... pointing out unintentional slip-ups and reminding them of penalities. I have also seen people get ticketed for infractions that deserved a warning, not a ticket.
From talking with officers and my own personal observations, of greatest concern to local law enforcers appear to be:
> Speeding in slow speed or no wake zones (including slow boats that make too big of a wake for the speed zone.)
> Drunk boating (Florida has the second toughest rules in the country.)
> Passengers with legs dangling over bow.
> Children without proper personal floatation devices.
> Personal watercraft infractions of any kind.
> Safety equipment infractions.
> Improper registration or markings.
High-fine tickets and mandatory court appearances are becoming the rule. Penalties for boating infractions are getting stiffer and police are more willing to use them. This is a predictable outgrowth of having massive numbers of boats on very limited waterway space.
Of course the best way to avoid getting in trouble is to obey all of the laws all of the time. But being human, you may make a mistake. It's easy to miss a channel marker or get confused about the frequent changes in speed zones. An officer may be more inclined to overlook a mistake if you do the following:
>Have your boat safety inspected each year (by the US Power Squadrons or Coast Guard Auxiliary) and display an up-to-date inspection sticker on your port side.
>Take a safe boating course and display the completion sticker.
>Make sure your safety gear is complete, up-to-date and properly maintained.
>Keep your boat/equipment in nice condition to show that you are conscientious.
>Don�t overload your boat with passengers.
>Do not operate while impaired or have open alcohol containers while underway.
>Treat the officer with respect. Don't insult his/her intelligence.
There are a lot of crazy boaters out there. In the end it's best that those many officers from all of those many agencies are there to protect us from the crazies. Besides, take a look at some of accidents and other police headaches in our area.