Charges: Hastings River Boater Drove Drunk With Children Aboard
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A Hastings man has been charged with driving drunk in a boat that was carrying several children -- all of whom were not wearing life jackets, according to the Dakota County Sheriff's office.
Justin Lyle Trepanier, 22, was pulled over on the Mississippi River near Hastings on the night of July 22 after officers noticed his boat had its lights off in pitch-black conditions.
Officers said Trepanier initially drove away from them as they approached, but then stopped when instructed.
Four adults and four children -- ranging in age from 10 months old to 9 years old -- were on the on board the motorboat. No one was wearing life jackets.
Officers said they could smell a strong odor of alcohol on Trepanier's breath, and his fine motor skills seemed compromised when he was searching for the boat's life jackets.
Trepanier allowed officers to come aboard to give him a field sobriety test, which he failed. He also agreed to a preliminary breathalyzer test, which read 0.15 percent -- which is about twice the legal limit. He refused to confer with an attorney and took another breath test about a half hour later, which he also failed.
He was charged Friday with two counts of third-degree boating while impaired. He could face up to two years in prison if convicted.