Blue Heron Bridge Trolls

[rickthompson]

What sucks is that we are from Miami, and my friend who got the ticket works full time during the week so fighting it would mean driving to wherever the county court house is and missing a day of work. It's really annoying because I saw at least two boats go around the boat channel in the swim zone while we were there, and it's not like anyone is enforcing that.

I'm guessing it's just a move for the county to bring in a little more revenue, but I brought a group of 30 divers up from Miami who all patronized local dive shops and restaurants. I feel like I should complain to the county tourism office...

 

[Arubandi07]

What sucks is that we are from Miami, and my friend who got the ticket works full time during the week so fighting it would mean driving to wherever the county court house is and missing a day of work. It's really annoying because I saw at least two boats go around the boat channel in the swim zone while we were there, and it's not like anyone is enforcing that.

I'm guessing it's just a move for the county to bring in a little more revenue, but I brought a group of 30 divers up from Miami who all patronized local dive shops and restaurants. I feel like I should complain to the county tourism office...

The exact scenario, the officer is counting on, in terms of getting away with writing that bogus ticket. A lot of folks just pay, rather than having to go through the hassle of going to court. If your friend can afford losing a day of work, she should contest the ticket, out of sheer principle.

 

[bilsant]

Jenny,

Without discussion of the merits or lack thereof in rickthompson's case, under FS Chapter 901, an officer can arrest (or issue citation) without actually seeing the violation if:

(9) There is probable cause to believe that the person has committed:

(a) Any battery upon another person, as defined in s. 784.03.
(b) An act of criminal mischief or a graffiti-related offense as described in s. 806.13.
(c) A violation of a safety zone, security zone, regulated navigation area, or naval vessel protection zone as described in s. 327.461.

I'm not sure how that applies to whichever specific statute the officer used in the citation.

In retrospect, I'm just guessing it might not have been for the dive flag, but for wandering into the channel or protected area.

 

[Biminitwist]

Unsure what happened beyond a weekend and sporadic "enforcement" of dive flag policy (usually also weekend based) but our deputys get overtime to appear at a hearing though nothing if the perp (innocent victim) pays the ticket.
Guessing someone came out without a nearby person carrying a flag since as a serial violator, I haven't been hassled.
This doesn't count being run over repeatedly too close to the channel without a flag by "the man" but counting on my lack of identifiability 3 hours later.....
John

 

[blauvelt]

Was nice there today.

 

[tekkydiver]

Found myself having to deal with an officer from the Sherif's office today. A diver in my group go separated from us right at the end of our dive, so after being unable to locate us, she joined another group with a flag who where making their way back to exit. Upon surfacing an officer immediately begun to heckle her, demanding her ID before she even had a chance to get out of her gear. This was around 12:30 on a Saturday afternoon so I'm pretty sure it's impossible not to be within 100ft of a dive flag at any point. My friend ended up getting a $60 ticket. Anyone else have to deal with this?

I would love to hear the LEO's version, as yours doesn't seem to add up. You don't say, but this would have to be a PBC Sheriff Marine Unit. It would also seem the LEO personally witnesses the diver violating the dive flag law in order to issue the summons.

Due to the high volume of boat traffic and divers in the area, flag laws are at times are strictly enforced for both divers and boaters (perhaps they have received recent complaints about divers without flags and assigned an officer to the area).

What sucks is that we are from Miami, and my friend who got the ticket works full time during the week so fighting it would mean driving to wherever the county court house is and missing a day of work. It's really annoying because I saw at least two boats go around the boat channel in the swim zone while we were there, and it's not like anyone is enforcing that.

So here is the bottom line: Fighting the ticket will cost the violator not one, but two separate trips to the court house. Bet on the officer appearing. Unless evidence is presented to reasonably contradict the word of the officer, the county will prevail.

I'm guessing it's just a move for the county to bring in a little more revenue, but I brought a group of 30 divers up from Miami who all patronized local dive shops and restaurants. I feel like I should complain to the county tourism office...

Oh god, that whine is so New Yawk!! I think you might be overestimating your groups economic impact.

These summons are not about revenue.... They are about safety.

 

[rickthompson]

I by no means disagree with the fact that the law is in place, and I see people at BHB all the time either diving without a flag or anchoring it a considerable distance away from where they are actually diving, I just don't see the merit of giving people a hard time about it when they aren't blatantly violating the law. The officer (PBC Sheriff Marine Unit) claimed all he cared about was safety, but from what I observed, he was in the park for less than 45 minutes, handed out 3 or 4 tickets, and then left. Seemed to me like he was just concerned with handing out a few tickets.

I've only been to BHB a couple dozen times, but in my experience there, boaters frequently cut around the channel into the recreation zone even when there are flags or swimmers on the surface present. More than anything, this situation has annoyed me because I've never seen any boating violations enforced (just from my personal experience).

I think we can all agree that we don't want any divers, swimmers or snorkelers getting injured around the bridge, I just think that the Sheriff's office should use their resources to enforce the more serious violations. Just my two cents.

 

[jimw]

Try Ticket Clinic, I am sorta serious. I know they worked for a red light camera ticky in Palm Beach County.

 

[deeper thoughts]

I wonder if they have quotas like in NYC

 

[Ricardo V.]

Nice conditions yesterday and today.