On 09/29/2023, at approximately 3:09 P.M., I, Officer, of the Maryland Natural Resources Police, responded to a call for service regarding a hit-and-run boating accident in Rockhold Creek. I met with Subject1 who advised that he had witnessed a grey vessel strike his vessel, which was on Subject1's private lift and departing the scene without exchanging information. Below is a timeline of the events that occurred on the afternoon of September 29th, 2023,

A dredge crew was working in Rockhold Creek in front of the residence.  During their operations, a crew member on a skiff was directing boat traffic up and down the creek due to the dredge pipeline floating and obstructing passage. At approximately 2:45 P.M., Subject2 observed Subject3 heading south at the 12 o'clock position (head-on) to the cutting wheel of the dredge. As the boat got closer, Subject2 signaled them to stop by waving and clenching his fist. The dredge blew the horn three times, to avoid collision with the dredge pipeline that was still floating. Subject2 stated that Subject3, at one point, said, "I'm going the minimum wake" and continued traveling. It was at this time that Subject1 and Subject4 observed the incident from the large back window of their home. 

Subject2 positioned the skiff on the right side of the channel next to the dredge to prevent Subject3 from continuing. Given the tight space with a private pier and a vessel on a lift nearby, Subject3 steered west to avoid hitting the skiff. However, he over steered his vessel, causing the starboard side of his hull to make contact with the starboard outboard motor.

Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR) 08.18.01.04 Rules of the Road states,
"An individual operating a vessel on waters of the State shall comply with the: (1) Inland Navigational Rules Act of 1980"
"Rule #7 Risk of Collision: Every vessel shall use all available means appropriate to the prevailing circumstances and conditions to determine if risk of collision exists. If there is any doubt such risk shall be deemed to exist."
 
Subject1 and Subject4 observed their vessel shake hard and both exited their house and ran down their pier. Despite the collision, Subject3 did not stop, even after Subject2 approached him, informing him that he had hit a vessel and needed to return.

Maryland Natural Resources Law, 8-724(a) states,
"The operator also shall give the operator's name, address, and their identification of the operator's vessel to any person injured or to the owner of any property damaged. The duties imposed by this subsection are in addition to any duties otherwise imposed by the law."

Subject2 managed to obtain the registration for the vessel that Subject3 was operating. I obtained witness statements from Subject1, Subject4 and Subject2.

After receiving the registration number, I was able to verify that the vessel belonged to Freedom Boat Club, and it was docked at Harbour Cove Marina, 5910 Vacation Ln, Deale, MD 20751. 

Subject3 will be cited with:
COMAR 08.18.01.04 Rules of the Road - Rule #7 Risk of Collision
NR 8-724(a)- Boating Accident - Duty to (give information)

And one warning, 
COMAR 08.18.01.04 Rules of the Road - Rule #5 Lookout

Witness statements and pictures of the incident have been uploaded to the attachments section of this report.

This case is closed. 

All events occurred in Anne Arundel County, MD.

505 Deale Road
Deale                         