Dustin Byfuglien charged with boating while intoxicated

Image via WikipediaDustin Byfuglin was charged with BWI, seems like this case has gotten a little more complicated. Maybe this is why Dustin Byfuglin had refused to take a blood or urine test?

TORONTO - Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien was charged Tuesday with boating while intoxicated three weeks after his arrest in Minnesota.

According to a criminal complaint from the Hennepin County Sheriff's office, a water patrol officer on Lake Minnetonka stopped Byfuglien's boat the evening of Aug. 31 because the navigational lights weren't on. According to the officer, Byfuglien's speech was slurred, his eyes were bloodshot and watery, he was unsteady on his feet and he smelled of alcohol. There were three people in the boat with him.

Authorities also said Byfuglien admitted to taking a muscle relaxant but couldn't remember the name of the drug and he said he takes a "handful of supplements from 16 or 17 different bottles every day."

Byfuglien was charged with third-degree boating while intoxicated, a gross misdemeanor carrying a penalty of up to a year in jail, and refusing to submit to a test. He was also charged with failing to display the proper warning lights on the boat and not having enough flotation devices for everyone on board.

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Dustin Byfuglien arrested on drunk boating allegation

Winnipeg Jets Defenseman Dustin Byfuglien was arrested in Minnesota for boating while intoxicated. As of this afternoon Byfuglien has yet to be charged.

WINNIPEG - Authorities in Minnesota say Winnipeg Jets star Dustin Byfuglien(notes) has been arrested on suspicion of boating while intoxicated.

The sheriff's jail roster in Hennepin County says the 26-year-old defenseman was brought in just before midnight Wednesday night and released shortly after 2 a.m.

An employee with the county sheriff's office says he was arrested on probable cause and officers have 36 hours to determine if he will actually be charged.

During that time, blood or urine tests will confirm if he was intoxicated.

Another jail official said a mug shot of Byfuglien was taken but a decision was made not to release it to the media.

In the U.S., it is an offense to operate a motorboat with a blood-alcohol limit higher than .08. A conviction carries a maximum $1,000 fine, possible jail time and loss of a boating licence. The offense is raised to a gross misdemeanour, increasing the fine and jail time, if the driver's blood-alcohol level is more than .20, he has similar past convictions or there were children on the boat.

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