MP "safety checks"
 

When an MP pulls you over, are they legally allowed to:

-Board your boat,
-Search your boat without probable cause to believe a crime has or is being committed, or
-Search your person without PC?

I know it says somewhere in the NH RSA that MP can do a "safety check" (or something along those lines), but is there a definition of safety check? I am under the impression that a boat is like a car, which is an extension of one's home, so they cannot be boarded or searched, as doing so would violate federal law (and NH state laws which I am unfamiliar with).

Anyone have any input? Bueller? Bueller? Skip? :)

MP does not "board" your boat, nor do they search it. You will be asked to produce the registration and positive form of ID and a Boater Ed Certificate. You will be asked to produce a wearable PFD for everyone on board and a type IV throwable cushion or ring if the vessel is 16 feet or over in length. You will be asked to produce a fire extinguisher(s) and a sound producing device, the type depending on boat length. Nighttime operation will include a check of the required lighting.

When you are stopped, the officer should tell you why you were stopped and he or she will take appropriate action depending on that reason or any equipment deficiencies found during the safety check. That action may be a Defective Equipment Tag, a verbal warning or a summons or a combination of same.

Should the vessel be impounded for any reason, an inventory search will be done to document the contents.

Procedures on coastal waters may differ.

What he said....
 

Nightwing beat me to it...I will only reiterate his point that when you boat along coastal (federal) waterways the NHMP has additional powers when acting under the colors of the USCG....but those powers do not extend to Winni.

As usual, great explanation Nightwing! :)

Thank you sir. It gets easier after explaining it a dozen times within a few months.:rolleye2:

Don't know if Nightwing is implying that people are stupid with his "explaining it a dozen times within a few months" comment.....but my take would be that there is a big turnover every week on the lake and lots of new posters pop up. If it's such a chore......why bother to post?

No implication of stupidity was intended. This subject and many others are constantly brought up on this forum by new and veteran posters alike, so some duplication of responses is necessary. Unfortunately, with the volume of threads here, it doesn't take long for a thread to drop out of sight if it isn't kept active.

If I didn't care, I wouldn't bother to reply.

Safety check sticker
 

In the past decade, I had the USCG auxilary inspect my boat and they give me a sticker to put on my boat. The requirements more than satisfies the state regulations for safety. This year was the first time I got a yellow sticker from the Dept of Safety. The state inspector says this will help avoid safety inspections when the MP stop you for a reason.

Even with both stickers on my windshield, I am still ask for a safety inspection. They did not stop me because I did something wrong. I stop them to point out infractions by others.

Courtesy inspection stickers will not prevent an inspection if you are stopped. Those inspections only prove that at the time they were done, your vessel met all the requirements.

Fire extinguishers can expire, PFD's can be lost or left at home and horns can stop working. Whoever told you the sticker was a pass to avoid inspection was wrong.

So true, it's hard to keep up with all of the threads. It's quite helpful to have folks like you and Skip give the quick and dirty, not to mention nitty gritty details, of the laws. Appreciated.