SCS HCS HB 1715 -- WATERCRAFT AND INTOXICATION-RELATED TRAFFIC
OFFENSES

This bill changes the laws regarding watercraft and
intoxication-related traffic offenses.  In its main provisions,
the bill:

(1)  Expands the provisions of law relating to towing of
abandoned property to include vessels;

(2)  Requires the holder of a certificate of ownership or
manufacturer's statement of origin for a vessel or outboard motor
to endorse an assignment with warranty of title and a statement
of all liens or encumbrances on the vessel or outboard motor at
the time of sale or transfer of ownership and give it to the
buyer at the time of delivery;

(3)  Prohibits vessels from displaying continuous spotlights,
docking lights, or other nonprescribed lights from sunset to
sunrise when under way, but clarifies that specialized lighting
may be used in the act of sport fishing;

(4)  Specifies that a person commits the crime of operating a
vessel while intoxicated, involuntary manslaughter with a vessel,
or assault with a vessel in the second degree when the person
operates any vessel in an intoxicated condition or operates any
vessel in any waters of the state while in an intoxicated
condition and acts with criminal negligence to cause the death of
or physical injury to any person;

(5)  Lowers from .1 of 1% to .08 of 1% the weight of alcohol
necessary in a person's blood for a presumption that the person
operating a vessel is intoxicated and removes the requirement
that a nonalcoholic antiseptic be used for cleansing the skin
prior to a venapuncture;

(6)  Defines "prior offender" as any person who has pled guilty
to or been found guilty of one intoxication-related boating
offense within five years of the intoxication-related boating
offense for which the person is charged.  A prior offender will
be guilty of a class A misdemeanor and will not be eligible for
probation or parole until he or she has served a minimum of five
days' imprisonment;

(7)  Defines "persistent offender" as a person who has pled
guilty to or been found guilty of two or more intoxication-
related boating offenses, involuntary manslaughter with a vessel,
assault with a vessel in the second degree, or assault of a law
enforcement officer in the second degree while in an intoxicated
condition or while under the influence of a controlled substance
operates a vehicle or motorboat causing injury to the officer.  A
persistent offender will be guilty of a class D felony and will
not be eligible for probation or parole until he or she has
served a minimum of 10 days' imprisonment;

(8)  Defines "aggravated offender" as a person who has pled
guilty to or been found guilty of three intoxication-related
boating offenses or has pled guilty to or been found guilty of
one or more intoxication-related boating offenses and any of the
following:  involuntary manslaughter with a vessel, assault with
a vessel in the second degree, or assault of a law enforcement
officer in the second degree while in an intoxicated condition or
under the influence of a controlled substance operating a vehicle
or motorboat to cause injury to the officer.  A person proved to
be an aggravated offender will be guilty of a class C felony and
will not be eligible for probation or parole until he or she has
served a minimum of 60 days' imprisonment;

(9)  Defines "chronic offender" as a person who has pled guilty
to or been found guilty of four or more intoxication-related
offenses; has pled guilty to or been found guilty of, on two or
more separate occasions, any combination of the following:
involuntary manslaughter with a vessel, assault with a vessel in
the second degree, or assault of a law enforcement officer in the
second degree while in an intoxicated condition or under the
influence of a controlled substance; or has pled guilty to or
been found guilty of two or more intoxication-related offenses
and any of the following:  involuntary manslaughter with a
vessel, assault with a vessel in the second degree, or assault of
a law enforcement officer in the second degree while in an
intoxicated condition or under the influence of a controlled
substance operating a vehicle or motorboat to cause injury to the
officer.  A person proved to be a chronic offender will be guilty
of a class B felony and will not be eligible for probation or
parole until he or she has served a minimum of two years'
imprisonment;

(10)  Specifies that no prior, persistent, aggravated, or chronic
offender of any boating while intoxicated offense will be given
an imposition of sentence;

(11)  Prohibits vessels from being operated at a speed in excess
of the slow no-wake speed within 100 feet of any emergency vessel
that has red or blue lighting displayed;

(12)  Requires the Commissioner of the State Water Patrol to have
at least 10 years' experience of similar law enforcement duties
or at least five years' experience as a uniformed member of the
patrol;

(13)  Prohibits any city or political subdivision from adopting
special rules and regulations restricting the operation of
personal watercraft on the waters of the state;

(14)  Specifies that a person will be guilty of the crime of
involuntary manslaughter if he or she operates a vessel in an
intoxicated condition and in doing so acts with criminal
negligence to cause the death of any person or operates a vessel
in violation of subsections 1 and 2 of Section 306.132, RSMo, and
causes the death of any person authorized to operate an emergency
watercraft;

(15)  Expands the crime of assault of a law enforcement officer
to include the operation of a vessel with criminal negligence to
cause physical injury to an officer, emergency personnel, or
probation and parole officer;

(16)  Expands the crime of abandoning a motor vehicle to include
the abandonment of a vessel on the right-of-way of any public
road or state highway;

(17)  Removes the limitation on the number of water patrol
sergeants, corporals, and patrolmen that the patrol may employ.
Currently, it may not have more than 99 members; and

(18)  Clarifies that evidence of a plea of guilty or finding of
guilty followed by incarceration, a suspended imposition of
sentence, suspended execution of sentence, probation or parole,
or any combination thereof in any intoxication-related traffic
offense in a state, county, or municipal court will be treated as
a prior plea of guilty or finding of guilty for the purposes of
determining whether a person is a chronic, aggravated,
persistent, or prior offender of an intoxication-related traffic
offense.

The bill contains an emergency clause for the provisions
regarding intoxication-related traffic offenses.

Missouri House of Representatives
94th General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated October 15, 2008 at 3:11 pm