Also, the defence argued that impaired persons operating vessels “propelled by muscle power” are somehow not morally culpable. Like, because, why?
I was going to say this could just be because the Canadian government is slow to adopt things. The Canadian flag wasn’t officially adopted until 1965 and the national anthem wasnt official until 1980.
But the case was about a person defending themselves from a drunk boating charge by saying a canoe doesn’t count as a “vessel”. It sounds similar to drunk people riding horses being charged with DUI. Courts have ruled horses count as vehicles and you need to be sober to ride one.
Wait, so are bikes and skateboards vehicles? Or ebikes/eboards?
Bikes absolutely are, which may come as a surprise to all the cyclists running stop signs. So riding a bike drunk can get you a DUI. This page says (with sources cited) that most provinces in Canada don’t have clarification on if skateboards are vehicles or not. I doubt any prosecutor would actually attempt to charge someone with a DUI for skateboarding drunk, so it’ll probably be a while before an official rulling is made on that!
According to this link it’s not illegal in Canada.
I mean I’m a Midwestern American, people being absolutely shit faced on a float trip is just the norm over here. I don’t like that, but I’m not surprised it’s not illegal.
Not American so I may be misunderstanding, but isn’t it either at least a DUI, or sometimes a special BUI, in every State? Your federal/state jurisdiction is still something I struggle with.
Also, regardless of legality I bet enforcement is impossible for float trips.
It does get enforced around here, but only in certain areas. If you’re paying for a float trip out here, you’re also paying for a cop free route.
Different countries, different precedent, but I think the Canadian case hinged on the vessel being powered. Even if it’s a paddle, it’s muscle powered.
I know there are different standards for barges under tow than for the tugs doing the towing. If the courts are extrapolating these rules to the smaller end, than a float might be okay. You’re just cast adrift, usually with alcohol.
