A jury found a Key West man guilty of boating under the influence following a one-day trial at the Freeman Justice Center Tuesday.

 

In trial before Monroe County Judge Peary Fowler, the six-person jury found Stephen Rodriguez, who turns 28 on June 21, guilty in a case that went back two and a half years. Assistant State Attorney Nicholas Trovato prosecuted the case.

 

Now Rodriguez will pay a heavy penalty: A $500 fine; $588 in court costs, the cost of prosecution and the cost of the initial investigation by marine officers; a $250 donation to the Monroe County Division of Marine Resources; 12 months of probation; and 10-day impoundment of his boat.

 

He must also perform 100 hours of community service; go through drunk-driving education school; hear from a person whose life was impacted by someone operating while impaired, known as a victim impact panel; and not drink alcohol for the length of his probation.

 

Around 3:20 p.m. Nov. 18, 2015, Rodriguez was on his boat Whoa Nelly on plane just outside the Conch Harbor Marina in Key West Harbor, according to a report by Reid White, the arresting officer for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. White, with three other officers on his boat, pulled Rodriguez over for a safety check.

 

White wrote that “as soon as we pulled up to the vessel,” he smelled alcohol coming from Rodriguez’s boat and saw a “copious amount of empty alcohol containers, especially empty Budweiser cans.”

 

Rodriguez provided the wrong paperwork to Lt. Michael Haney when asked for his driver’s license and boat registration, then “began talking about the powerboat races” and was unable to focus on the conversation, White wrote.

 

White then asked Rodriguez to show him four life jackets, a “throwable” seat cushion, two fire extinguishers, flares, and a horn or whistle. Rodriguez “quickly and erratically started pulling out safety equipment” but told White that all the safety gear was in sealed bags he couldn’t open.

 

Then, White wrote, Rodriguez pulled out a bag with four life jackets in it, which apparently satisfied the officer. “He seemed to not register what I had said and he pulled out another bag with more life jackets. I told him that he had enough life jackets. He pulled out a third bag and again stated he had more life jackets….”

 

Ultimately, Rodriguez provided everything but flares and said “we can go ahead and cite him. He seemed very eager to end the stop, as he had throughout the safety inspection. He also seemed uncoordinated and seemed to have to focus very hard to complete task and have conversation,” White wrote.

 

That’s when White asked Rodriguez if he had been drinking, and he reportedly said he had drunk three beers. White reported that Rodriguez’s eyes were red, glassy and dilated, he appeared to have dry-mouth and was “having trouble focusing on me.”

 

White decided to put Rodriguez through field sobriety tests and when the suspect got onto the officers’ boat, White “detected the overpowering odor” of alcohol coming from him.

 

Rodriguez failed four field sobriety tests, White wrote, and while going through them, he was “very lethargic and took a long time to respond to instructions and to perform tasks.”

 

With the totality of his interaction with Rodriguez, White charged him with boating under the influence, handcuffed him and took him to shore for transport to the Monroe County Detention Center. The Woah Nelly was handed off to one of Rodriguez’s passengers.

 

On the ride to shore, Rodriguez “seemed to be on the verge of crying,” White wrote.

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