Boating Violations Defense Lawyer
Boating Under The Influence
If you’ve been pulled over for a boating violation, you could be on the hook for not just one citation, but several. The list of Texas boating violations is long and includes moving and non-moving violations. When the water patrol pulls up to your boat, they will be looking for everything that they can cite you for, not just the offense that brought them in your direction.
Every violation has a fine attached to it – from $250 to $500. If you received several citations, it can add up. Get legal help. Contact boating ticket defense lawyer Chad Lee, 817-678-6771.
Mr. Lee is a former prosecuting attorney turned defense lawyer. He has been repeatedly voted a Top Criminal Defense Attorney by Fort Worth magazine. He defends Texas boat operators, boat owners, boat businesses, fisherman and fishing guides who have been cited with boating violations, fishing violations , or boating-related criminal offenses, such as:
- Speeding (violating boating speed restrictions)
- Violating a no-wake zone
- Equipment and lighting violations (insufficient life jackets, operating without life jackets, operating without a sound producing device or a fire extinguisher, or improper or no lighting)
- Failure to register a vessel, to display a boat registration decal or numbers
- No registration card
- Moorage violations, trespassing or operating in a restricted area
- Removal, defacement or destruction of signs, depth markers or informational signage on waterways
- Violations involving children not wearing a life preserver or operating a boat
Business Boating Violations
Boating isn’t just a hobby in Texas. It’s also big business. Whether you are a professional fisherman, you run a tourist fishing boat, rent boats, or take visitors on chartered cruises, there is a lot at stake if your business has been cited for a boating violation.
Before you agree to pay fines and fees, talk with an attorney. Pleading guilty and paying a fine can have unexpected consequences later on. Attorney Lee defends clients against:
- Boat livery violations
- Operating without livery liability insurance
- No bait dealer or fish dealer license, no fishing guide license
- No annual inspection for a party boat
- Operating a commercial venture without a permit
- Failure to notify of change in ownership of a boat
- And more…
Criminal Boating Charges, Like Boating Under The Influence
A boat is a dangerous vehicle, capable of causing serious injury or death. You could face criminal charges for operating a boat in a reckless manner. Criminal boating charges could include:
- Causing a boating accident
- Leaving the scene of a boating accident
- Boating under the influence of alcohol or drugs (BUI)
- Reckless operation of a boat or personal watercraft
- Using a boat in the commission of a crime
- Signing false affidavits
Talk to a Texas Defense Lawyer
Whether you are facing criminal charges and jail time or citations and thousands of dollars in fines, a boating violations lawyer can make a difference in your case. There may be mitigating evidence that can reduce or eliminate fines or jail time.
At Lee and Wood, we do everything we can to help you through this difficult time. Contact our Fort Worth law office for a free, confidential consultation: 817-678-6771. Or complete our online contact form to schedule an appointment.