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2a4all wrote:
§ 29.1-205. Power to make arrests.
All conservation police officers are vested with the authority, upon displaying a badge or other credential of office, to issue a summons or to arrest any person found in the act of violating any of the provisions of the hunting, trapping, inland fish and boating laws.
Regular conservation police officers are vested with the same authority as sheriffs and other law-enforcement officers to enforce all of the criminal laws of the Commonwealth.
Any special conservation police officer shall have general police power while performing his duty on properties owned or controlled by the Board.
Any commissioned, warrant or petty officers of the United States Coast Guard and of the United States Coast Guard Reserve while engaged on active duty, in the conduct of their official duties in uniform, and any officers of the customs as defined by 19 U.S.C. § 1709(b), in the conduct of their official duties in uniform, shall have the same power to make arrests under Chapter 7 (§ 29.1-700 et seq.) of Title 29.1 as conservation police officers.
This was in the 80's and we were busy enough enforcing federal laws. If we came across a state violation (small quantity of drugs, fishing violation, etc), we would detain the vessel or escort them to the nearest place we could meet with local LE and turn them over. We only held people the federal magistrate was interested in prosecuting. Back then, less than a bale of marijuana was too small forthe magistratetobother with, so we would turn them over to the locals. The only state violations I came across were violations of the ban on Rockfish (Striped Bass). At that time, the fine was $1,000 PER FISH and siezure of the boat in Maryland waters. We DID hold those violators for the Md. Natural Resources Police (MNRP).
Had one really funny case where we were coming up on a boat fishing in the St. Marys River. They saw us coming and pulled up their anchor in a hurry and took off. We had a slower boat, but they were going upriver to a "dead end". They started throwing fish over the side like footballs. They were already dead, so they floated. We stopped to pick up each one we saw and it ended up being 36 of them. They finally stopped when they had no fish left and tried to claim the fish we had weren't theirs. That was one of our first uses of video tape evidence. I believe the year was 1986. We held the guys for the MNRP and had a good laugh that afternoon watching the video over and over. We named one of the guys "Billy Kilmer" after the Redskins QB that couldn't throw a ball very straight.
