FWC Law Enforcement Weekly Reports for July 14-20

July 14 through July 20, 2023

This report represents some events the FWC handled over specified weeks; 
however, it does not include all actions taken by the Division of Law Enforcement.

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View previous editions.

CASES

Bay County

• Officers T. Basford, Coker and Jarrell were on patrol in St. Andrews Bay when they observed a vessel making unusual movements while underway. They stopped the vessel to conduct a boating safety inspection. There was a child not wearing a life jacket and the operator did not have a boater safety card. During the inspection, the operator showed signs of impairment. Officer Jarrell conducted standard field sobriety tasks and determined the operator was impaired. The operator provided breath samples and the results were over the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration. The operator was arrested for boating under the influence and issued citations for no boater safety card and no life jacket on a child under six years of age. 
• Officers Jarrell and N. Basford were on patrol in St. Andrews Bay when they stopped a boat to conduct a boating safety and resource inspection. During the stop, the operator showed signs of impairment. Officer Jarrell conducted standard field sobriety tasks and determined the operator was under the influence. The operator refused to provide a breath sample. He was arrested for boating under the influence, refusal to submit to breath test and no boater safety card. 
• Officers Jarrell and Gore stopped a vessel in St. Andrews Bay to conduct a boating safety inspection. The operator struggled to produce documentation and safety equipment. During the stop, the operator pushed the throttles forward while the boats were still tied together. Officer Jarrell conducted standard field sobriety tasks because the operator was showing signs of impairment. The operator refused to provide a breath sample. He was arrested for boating under the influence and issued a citation for refusing to submit to testing. 
• Officers N. Basford and Boley stopped a vessel in St. Andrews Bay to conduct a resource inspection. A bag of filets were found in the vessel. The bag contained bonita filets and vermillion snapper filets. The individual was charged with possession of reef fish not in whole condition. 
• Officers Gore and N. Basford were patrolling Deerpoint Lake when they stopped a vessel to conduct a boating safety inspection. During the stop, the operator had slurred speech and had a smell of alcoholic beverages coming from him. Officer Basford conducted standard field sobriety tasks and determined he was under the influence. The individual provided breath samples that were over the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration. He was arrested for boating under the influence. 
• Officer N. Basford was on patrol in St. Andrews St. Park when she conducted a resource inspection on a vessel that just returned from fishing. The operator refused to respond to Officer Basford’s questions multiple times when she asked if he had any fish in his vessel. He finally answered her stating he had two small fish in his boat. Officer Basford discovered two greater amberjack, both under 20 inches long. The minimum size to keep is 34 inches to the fork. He was issued a citation for possession of undersized greater amberjack and possession during closed season. 
• Captain Clements and Officer N. Basford were on patrol when they stopped a vessel in Grand Lagoon to conduct a boating safety and resource inspection. There was a three-year-old child not wearing a life jacket in the vessel. The operator was showing signs of impairment. Officer Basford conducted standard field sobriety tasks and determined he was under the influence. He provided breath samples that were above the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration. The operator was arrested for boating under the influence and issued a citation for a child under six not wearing a personal flotation device. 

Escambia County

• During the Blue Angels Air Show, Officers Burkhead and Ramos conducted a safety inspection on a vessel with a large crowd on board. As Officer Burkhead asked the operator to provide required safety equipment, he noticed that the operator appeared to have a difficult time producing the requested items. In addition, the operators’ eyes were bloodshot and glassy and his movements were slow. Officer Burkhead asked the operator if he thought he was too impaired to operate a boat and the operator replied by saying maybe so. Officer Burkhead conducted standard field sobriety tasks on the operator, which he performed poorly. The operator also provided a breath sample that was over the legal limit for blood alcohol concentration. The subject was placed under arrest and transported to the Escambia County Jail.

Franklin County

• While patrolling on St. George Island Sound, Officers Hartzog and Forbes conducted a boating safety and resource inspection on a recreational fishing vessel. During the inspection, the operator of the vessel was observed to be impaired and was asked to conduct standardized field sobriety tasks. After completing the tasks, the operator was determined to be operating a vessel while under the influence. While arresting the operator, a vessel occupant became belligerent and continued to board their patrol vessel after being instructed not to. The occupant and the operator were arrested and transported to Franklin County Jail.

Gulf County

• Senior Officers M. and H. Webb were working the Blue Angels Air Show in Pensacola. While patrolling the Santa Rosa Sound, the officers stopped a recreational vessel leaving Little Sabine Bay. Officer H. Webb conducted a boating safety and resource inspection on the vessel and noticed the operator was showing signs of impairment. Officer Webb administered seated standardized field sobriety tasks on the operator and determined he had been operating the vessel while impaired. Officer Webb arrested the operator for boating under the influence. The operator was transported and booked into the Escambia County Jail.

OFFSHORE PATROL

• While on patrol near the Madison Swanson Marine Protected Area, Lieutenant Smith and Officers Hartzog and Nelson observed a recreational fishing vessel entering the protected area and stop. The officers conducted a resource inspection of the vessel and found the vessel occupants were in possession of several red snapper and red grouper. The harvest or possession of reef fish in the Marine Protected Area is a violation of federal regulations. The officers documented the violation and forwarded details to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
• While conducting vessel patrol near the Madison Swanson Marine Protected Area, Lieutenant Smith and Officers Hartzog and Nelson observed a recreational fishing vessel traveling through the marine protected area. The officers conducted a stop and resource inspection of the vessel and located several reef fish and one red grouper shorter than the minimum recreational size limit of 20 inches aboard the vessel. The officers documented the violations and forwarded details to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
• While patrolling west of Taylor County, Lieutenant Smith and Officers Hartzog and Nelson conducted a resource inspection of a recreational fishing vessel. During the inspection, the officers located a bag containing gag grouper filets. Gag grouper season is closed during this time and fish are required to be landed in whole condition. The officers took appropriate action to address the violations.
• While on patrol south of Franklin County, Lieutenant Smith and Officers Hartzog and Nelson observed a recreational fishing vessel with several individuals on board fishing. The officers conducted a resource inspection and found the occupants of the vessel were in possession of out-of-season gag grouper and not in whole condition filet, and undersized red snapper, flounder, and out-of-season, undersized greater amberjack. The officers documented the violation and forwarded details of the violation to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

CASES

Citrus County

• Lieutenant Ransom was patrolling the scallop grounds to enforce and educate about diver down flag regulations. He made three stops for vessels operating above idle speed within 300 feet of displayed diver down flags and while divers were in the water. The three vessel operators were cited for the violation. 
• Officer Jovanov was patrolling the scallop grounds, addressing violations concerning diver down flags and boating safety. During one of the patrols, Officer Jovanov conducted a vessel stop for operating above idle speed within 300 feet of displayed diver down flags and while divers were in the water. The officer issued the vessel operator a citation for the violation. 

Columbia County

• Senior Officer Johnston recently completed an investigation that originated from two subjects trespassing on state land owned and managed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Officer Johnston contacted one adult and one juvenile who were trespassing on the state-owned land. After a brief investigation, Officer Johnston discovered the subjects were in possession of drug paraphernalia and an unknown brown wax-like substance suspected to be an illicit narcotic. The subjects were issued non-expiring trespass notices and ordered not to return to the property. The suspected narcotic was sent to Florida Department of Law Enforcement for laboratory analysis. The analysis revealed the unknown substance was Tetrahydrocannabinol resin, which is classified as a schedule 1 controlled substance and is a felony to possess. Due to the positive identification, charges are being filed with the State Attorney’s Office for possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. An incident report will also be filed with the local Florida Department of Juvenile Justice office for review. 

Duval County

• Officer Specialist Stuhr and Officer Specialist Culbreth were conducting joint enforcement agreement patrol targeting reef fish. They encountered a vessel about 10 miles from the coast of Fernandina Beach heading west toward land. The officers activated their emergency lights to conduct a fishery inspection and immediately noticed the vessel turn away from them. There were four individuals onboard and the officers noticed them gathering a mesh bag and dumping it overboard. The officers also noticed there were red colored fish inside the bag that went overboard. The individuals had their limit in red snapper and is presumed they had more in the mesh bag they dumped. During the interaction, the individuals said it was crabs and shrimp used as bait. All individuals were issued a notice to appear for F.S. 379.3311(3) for interference or obstruction of a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer. The operator was also issued a uniform boating citation and a written warning for no registration certificate onboard and improper display of registration numbers. 

Gilchrist County

• Officer Hilliard, Senior Officer Johnston, and Lieutenant Kiss responded to a boating accident with injuries that occurred near Ellie Ray’s Resort on the Santa Fe River. A vessel was settling into the water while one behind it didn’t see the vessel decrease in speed and struck the starboard stern. The vessel veered into the riverbank striking a cypress tree ejecting the operator and passenger into the water.  Both were rescued by passerby boaters and taken to Ellie Ray’s Resort. Fire and Emergency Medical Services were called, and the operator and passenger were transported to Shands Hospital in Gainesville with non-life threatening injuries. Officer Hilliard is conducting the ongoing investigation and charges are pending. 

CASES

Charlotte County

• Officer Russell was on land patrol near Gilchrist Park in Punta Gorda when he saw an individual fishing along the sea wall. As the subject began to load up his vehicle, Officer Russell approached the subject and asked if he had caught anything. Initially, the subject stated he had only caught a shark. A resource inspection revealed he had caught a 36” snook. The subject was issued a notice to appear for out-of-season and oversized snook. 

Hernando County

• While on water patrol, Officer Matthew Swindell, and Senior Officer Joshua Little were checking blue crab traps. Of 23 traps pulled, 17 were found to have expired trap tags, and one had no biodegradable exclusionary device. The owner of the traps was located and cited accordingly. 

Hillsborough County

• While on patrol, Officer McCormack responded to a call regarding four subjects catching and keeping freshwater gamefish in the Tampa Bypass Canal late into the evening. He located the subjects and conducted a resource inspection. The officer found one of the subjects had been fishing while the other three watched. Moreover, he discovered the subject was using a cast net to catch and had two buckets with multiple species of fish including 22 freshwater gamefish. Officer McCormack issued the appropriate resource citation.  

Lee County

• Officer Bradley Johnson and Lieutenant Ruggiero were conducting resource inspections when they encountered a vessel returning from Boca Grande. The subjects on board said they didn’t fish and didn’t have any fish on board. After saying they had all their safety gear on board, the subjects were missing one life jacket and a throwable device. In addition, the officers observed a cooler that contained several fish, including three undersized sheepshead. They also found two spear guns. The subjects told the officers where they had speared the fish, which was closed by special act in Lee County. The officers determined which of the subjects had speared the fish and he was issued the appropriate resource citation. 

Manatee County

• Lieutenant Dalton observed a group of people collecting various shellfish in Longboat Pass. As the group was leaving, Lieutenant Dalton stopped their vessel and conducted a resource inspection. He discovered the group had kept over 250 tulip snails and several other species of shellfish. The operator of the vessel was given a notice to appear for over the bag limit of marine life and for the violation of two live shells per person. 
• Senior Investigator O’Horo was working land patrol when he responded to an alligator complaint. Upon the completion of his investigation, he discovered the subject was in possession of an alligator and was not authorized to catch American alligators. The subject was cited for possession of American alligator and will have to appear in court for the violation. 

Pasco County

• Captive Wildlife Investigators Tyer, Fisher and Jacob Carter were working a complaint regarding someone selling reptiles to the public that were taken from the wild.  When they arrived at the subject’s home, they found an individual who was offering wild caught Florida turtles for sale. The subject was charged with eight violations pertaining to the sale and possession of wild caught turtles. The individual is required to appear in court for his violations.