The Port of Los Angeles has a total of 16 marinas with 3,795 recreational boat slips. Since a day on a boat often involves enjoyment of adult beverages, there are plenty of opportunities for boaters to face arrest on a water-related DUI in Los Angeles (technically a BUI–boating under the influence). The results of this behavior can be deadly; according to a U.S. Coast Guard Boating report, 16 percent of the boating-related fatalities in the Pacific region of the U.S. involved boating while intoxicated.
Other parts of the country have even worse records. In the Western region, which includes Oklahoma, 18 percent of the boating deaths were alcohol-related. Fortunately, the boating accident caused by Aaron Christopher Hux on July 6th didn’t cause any fatalities. But when the 39-year old Hux struck a concrete wall just north of a marina on Keystone Lake, the impact did plunge three of the four teenagers onboard into the water and sent them to the hospital for treatment.
Hux was piloting his 25-foot-boat a little after 10:00 p.m. when he crashed into a breakwater wall going 20 mph. Hux claimed that he simply hadn’t been paying attention, but the Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers who reported to the crash scene said he smelled strongly of alcohol and gave him a sobriety test. He failed; news reports say he couldn’t do a one-legged stand or remain steady when he tried to walk and turn.
The troopers charged him with DUI and gave him a breathalyzer test at the Manford Police Department. Hux’s blood alcohol content measured 0.28, more than three times the legal limit. He spent the night in jail but got out the next morning on $1,000 bail.
California has a “boating under the influence” law outlined in the California Harbors and Navigation Code. The impaired driving threshold for BUI is the same as it is for DUI; a BAC of 0.08 or more can put you in dry dock at the local jail.
Los Angeles DUI defense lawyer, Michael Kraut, of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers is standing by to offer critical insight into your case and potential defense options. Call him and his team today to begin regaining control over your case and your life.