Lake Norman boater arrested under new state law

It may be easy for many people in Monroe to automatically dismiss the notion of there being any “grey area” in the knowledge and interpretation of the law. This no doubt comes from a line of thinking that all statutes rely on well-known logic and should be easily assumed even when exact their exact details are not known.

Yet that is not always the case. While there may be common offenses that many people know about, there are also often offshoots of laws that many might be unfamiliar with. What one believes to be perfectly lawful activities could in fact be in violation of a lesser-known criminal statute.

New local boating law cited in recent arrest

While some expect people to infer the legality of certain actions just based on their nature, few likely know the particular details of many laws. Even fewer may know about new laws. According to the local CBS News affiliate, authorities cited just such a law in the arrest of a man for operating his boat while intoxicated on Lake Norman. Reports say that he struck another boat while out on the lake, resulting in some passengers sustaining injuries. While some may already know that law enforcement officials can prosecute people for driving a boat while drunk, few may be aware of a new law that mandates felony arrests occur when intoxicated boaters cause injuries. The law is the result of the efforts of a local family to stiffen penalties for drunk boaters following the death of their daughter in a boating accident.

Mitigating the consequences stemming from unknown violations

While ignorance of the law may not justify its violation, authorities may take a lack of knowledge into account when meting out judgment. Having the assistance of a criminal defense attorney during one’s prosecution may help in ensuring this happens.