Medical Marijuana incident

[Wookie]

We had our first passenger attempt to bring his medical marijuana onboard recently. He had a prescription, he was vaping it, and he was from a state that allowed medical marijuana. Florida currently does not. The US Coast Guard still treats possession of marijuana as a federal offense, which it is. Any US flagged vessel is regulated by the US Coast Guard. The Coast Guard will seize the vessel and revoke the captain's license if marijuana is found onboard, regardless of whose possession the marijuana is found, or the prescription status of the user.

The captain has power of arrest offshore. To protect my vessel and license, if I find marijuana on my vessel, I will arrest you and turn you over to the Coast Guard for prosecution if you bring dope on my boat. Sorry, but some of us answer to a higher power than the customer.

 

[Tug]

We had our first passenger attempt to bring his medical marijuana onboard recently. He had a prescription, he was vaping it, and he was from a state that allowed medical marijuana. Florida currently does not. The US Coast Guard still treats possession of marijuana as a federal offense, which it is. Any US flagged vessel is regulated by the US Coast Guard. The Coast Guard will seize the vessel and revoke the captain's license if marijuana is found onboard, regardless of whose possession the marijuana is found, or the prescription status of the user.

The captain has power of arrest offshore. To protect my vessel and license, if I find marijuana on my vessel, I will arrest you and turn you over to the Coast Guard for prosecution if you bring dope on my boat. Sorry, but some of us answer to a higher power than the customer.

I'll add one thing to Wookie's post. I can't remember a commercial vessel that I've been on that hasn't had this placard onboard.

Remember, this isn't about a vessel operators personal views, if they lose their license and their vessel is seized it affects their livelihood. If you really want to smoke onboard, chances are a USCG Inspected vessel isn't for you.

 

[Diver0001]

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Name calling and subsequent responses removed.

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[Wookie]

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Name calling and subsequent responses removed.

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OK, but I wasn't upset with the poster's response. Folks need to know what they are getting into and what the consequences are for their actions.

Either way, it's fine.

 

[JesperS]

What was the outcome of the incident in the OP? Was he arrested? Barred from boarding? Boarded without the MJ?

 

[abnfrog]

you have to protect yourself and have the right to protect your vessel and the way you make a living........just like protecting your self from assault ...if you post the policy i would do the same ....

 

[Wookie]

Boarded without the Marijuana. He made it clear to us he had it, which I appreciated. His reason was valid in my untrained opinion. He was not a diver. He had a swallowing issue, and if he couldn't have his prescription, we would have to make him smoothies for the trip. We choose to make smoothies rather than risk the boat. He was fine with the outcome, we were fine with the outcome, and he was very nice about it.

I have had recreational users, OTOH, on both this boat and another I worked on, who didn't tell us of their posession, snuck it on, and we discovered them with it, one in a foreign land, one in the USA. They were told to get rid of it. On the other boat they smoked it up and it was gone. I did not own that boat, nor was I the Captain. The incident on this boat, they scattered it around the whole berthing area. I was forced to pay for a drug dog from the local PD, and replace the carpets (the dog hit no matter how much we shampoo'd) to get rid of the residual. I have no idea what happened to the luggage of the other passengers, whether the recreational users got it on their luggage or just on the Spree. That would be kind of a surprise, going through customs on the way back to Canada and have the dog ping on your suitcase.....

 

[Diver0001]

We had our first passenger attempt to bring his medical marijuana onboard recently. He had a prescription, he was vaping it, and he was from a state that allowed medical marijuana. Florida currently does not. The US Coast Guard still treats possession of marijuana as a federal offense, which it is. Any US flagged vessel is regulated by the US Coast Guard. The Coast Guard will seize the vessel and revoke the captain's license if marijuana is found onboard, regardless of whose possession the marijuana is found, or the prescription status of the user.

The captain has power of arrest offshore. To protect my vessel and license, if I find marijuana on my vessel, I will arrest you and turn you over to the Coast Guard for prosecution if you bring dope on my boat. Sorry, but some of us answer to a higher power than the customer.

So.... let me get this right. Someone can legally get a prescription for MJ but if they take it on a boat then it's not legal anymore?

R..

 

[redacted]

So.... let me get this right. Someone can legally get a prescription for MJ but if they take it on a boat then it's not legal anymore?

R..

God bless America.:shocked2:

The wheels of change turn rather slowly until you get a whole lot of folks pushing.

 

[Wookie]

So.... let me get this right. Someone can legally get a prescription for MJ but if they take it on a boat then it's not legal anymore?

R..

That is correct. The feds hate Marijuana. Some of us don't care, finding it no more offensive than drinking, and far less offensive in many cases. BUT. Possession is still a federal offense. That's why much of the marijuana trade in the USA is with cash, because the banks are regulated federally, and since marijuana use of any type is illegal at the federal level, banks are often refusing to process funds from the sale of Marijuana. It's a big deal.

At our annual meeting with our local Coast Guard regulators, the question of otherwise legal marijuana use was raised. The Coast Guard stands firm on the illegality if marijuana use onboard inspected and commercial vessels, and by commercial mariners. So, if you have a prescription, you can't use it on a commercial vessel. Period. No matter who you are.

My suspicion is that when someone develops a test to see if a person is currently under the influence, the feds will relax their regulations. The only test they can give us (mariners) now is whether or not we've used it in the past 30 days.