RedactedNarrative: On 8-6-16 I, Indiana Conservation Officer #1, received a report of a boat accident that happened on Lake Wawasee. As a result of the accident Victim1 was transported to Parkview Regional in Fort Wayne for treatment. 
  
  Operator1 (Operator)
  Involved Persons: 
  Owner (Vehicle Owner)
  Passenger#2 (Passenger)
  Passenger#1 (Passenger)
  Passenger#4 (Passenger)
  Passenger#3 (Passenger)
  Good Samaritan1 (Operator)
  Occupant1 (Passenger)
  Towed Owner#1 (Vehicle Owner)
  Victim1 (Victim)
  Occupant2 (Passenger)
  Witness1 (Witness)
  Syracuse PD Officer #2 
  
  Details of Investigation/Incident:
  On 8-6-16 at approximately 1720 hours I, Indiana Conservation Officer #1, received a report of a boating accident that occurred on Lake Wawasee with personal injury. When I arrived at the scene with the three boats involved I was informed nobody needed any emergency medical attention. I instructed all the boats to go to the public boat launch due to the choppy water conditions. The pontoon (operated by Good Samaritan1) was pulling the fishing boat (owned by Towed Owner#1). 
  
  The Wake Setter (operated by Operator1) was the first to arrive to the public boat ramp. Once the Wake Setter was secured at the pier I asked Operator1 to come with me to answer some questions. Upon interviewing Operator1 I could smell the odor of alcohol on his breath and he admitted to drinking. I had Operator1 perform several field sobriety tests of which he passed the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus and the Hand Coordination. Operator1 failed the Finger to Nose and the Palm Pat standardized field sobriety tests. Operator1 took my PBT and tested to have a BAC of .064%. During my interview with Operator1 advised muskrats had destroyed the wiring to his wake wedge and he was unable to bring his bow down while operating. Operator1 said he thinks he was going under 10 MPH. He didn't see the pontoon or the fishing boat before striking them. Operator1 said all four of his passengers were sitting in the back of the boat and “that probably wasn't a good idea since he knew he couldn't bring his bow down.” He advised they got on the lake about 1400 hours and they had been on the sandbar almost the entire time. The accident had happened when they were leaving the sandbar. 
  
  Passenger#1 Interview
  Passenger#1 advised at the time of the accident here was in the back of the Wake Setter and looking backwards. He said while out on the sandbar he had drank one beer. I had him take the PBT since he is under the age of 21 and he tested .00. He said he didn't know how fast they were going but didn't think it was very fast. Passenger#1 said he didn't see either boat before they collided. 
  
  Passenger#2 Interview
  Passenger#2 advised he was sitting behind the driver and was facing backwards at the time of the accident. He stated their bow was up in the air so he couldn't see the boat or hear anything before they struck the pontoon. Passenger#2 advised they got on the lake about 1400 hours and had spent the majority of the time on the sandbar due to the boat not operating properly.
  
  Passenger#3 Interview
  Passenger#3 stated he was sitting in the back of the boat on the passenger's side when the accident happened. He stated they were all looking at the wake and talking about it so nobody saw the other two boats. Passenger#3 said he didn't know what happened until after the come off Towed Owner#1’s boat. Once Passenger#3 saw Victim1 and Towed Owner#1 in the water he jumped in to help them. He helped Victim1 get onto Good Samaritan1's pontoon. While interviewing Passenger#3 I could smell the odor of marijuana. Passenger#3 denied the use of marijuana or any other drugs. 
  
  Passenger#4 Interview 
  Passenger#4 stated he was also in the back of the boat looking backwards at the time of the accident and didn't see what happened. He advised they had been on the sandbar and the accident happened when they were leaving. He said he had been drinking on the boat. Since he is under the age of 21 I had him to take Officer #2's PBT and he tested .00. While interviewing Passenger#4 both Officer #2 and I could smell the odor of marijuana. 
  
  I advised Operator1, Passenger#1, Passenger#2, Passenger#3, and Passenger#4 I could smell marijuana coming from their person and from the boat and I asked for consent to search their boat. Operator1 consented to the search of the boat and stated "we don't have any marijuana on the boat." I asked them to sit on the pier with Officer #2 while I searched the boat. During the search I located large amounts of unopened liquor and beer, a large amount of empty alcohol containers and I didn't locate any marijuana. 
  
  Good Samaritan1 Interview
  Good Samaritan1 advised he and his wife were towing Towed Owner#1's due to Towed Owner#1 having some mechanical difficulties. Good Samaritan1 stated he saw the Wake Setter headed towards his pontoon but was unable to maneuver out of the way due to towing Towed Owner#1. Since he couldn't avoid the collision he sounded his horn in attempts to get the attention of Operator1. Good Samaritan1 was towing with line attached to his rear starboard cleat so Towed Owner#1's boat was offset to the right of his pontoon. They were driving at a slow speed due to the choppy lake conditions. Good Samaritan1 gave me the name (Witness1) and number of an individual who stopped to check on them and who saw the accident happen. 
  
  Occupant1 Interview
  Occupant1 was a passenger on Good Samaritan1's boat and she advised she tried to get Operator1's attention when she noticed he didn't see their boat. 
  
  Occupant2 Interview
  Occupant2 was now on Good Samaritan1's boat due to Towed Owner#1's boat starting to take on water after the accident. Occupant2 stated she couldn't see the boat coming due to the pontoon obstructing their view. She advised she was sitting on the driver's side of the boat and was nearly struck by Operator1's boat. She stated the only injury she had was some cuts from when the windshield shattered but didn't need medical attention.  
  
  Towed Owner#1 Interview
  Towed Owner#1 advised his boat was having some mechanical issues and Good Samaritan1 offered to tow him back to the boat ramp. They were slowly going across the lake due to the rough wave conditions. Towed Owner#1 was riding on the bow of his boat when the accident happened. He stated he didn't see Operator1's boat coming until it hit Good Samaritan1's boat. He saw the boat coming towards him so he jumped off his boat to avoid being struck. Towed Owner#1 advised he wasn't injured but he was sore from jumping overboard. He advised he didn't need any medical attention.        
  
  Victim1 Interview
  Victim1 advised he was sitting in the passenger's seat right behind the windshield when the accident happened. Victim1 stated he saw the bottom of Operator1's boat coming right for him but he was unable to move in time to avoid being struck by the boat. Victim1 said the next thing he remembers is being in the water. Victim1 was complaining of shoulder and knee pain and wanted to go to the hospital to be checked out. Victim1 refused emergency medical treatment and stated Towed Owner#1 was going to drive him to Parkview Whitley. 
  
  I told Towed Owner#1 I would inspect the damages done to his boat at a later time so he could leave and take Victim1 to the hospital. I photographed the damage done to Good Samaritan1's boat and he advised he docked it at Main Channel Marina. I advised Operator1 I needed to have his boat taken out of the water so I could see the damage done to hull. Operator1 advised he didn't have a trailer close but he stored his boat at Main Channel Marina. Officer #2 made arrangements with Main Chann
  