Yes, I do think he would of had lesser charges had he not of run. The entire incident might of been considered civil instead of now criminal.

As others have said, very easy to run up on something like that at night; the lights on the boat blend right into the shoreline lights and you can't tell if the light comes from shoreline or a boat until your right up on it and if your going to fast then can't react fast enough.

news is now reporting that the authorities have video evidence taken from local bars that indicate his demeanor prior to this happening.

The only way I figure someone can ram something like that is he had tabs, or trim, or both up and was trying to plane out with the bow pointed to the moon blocking his view for a couple hundred yards.

Bull****...sorry, that's a frggin party barge, you're too fast, not paying attention, too bombed, or too fricking irresponsible to be running at night or day for that matter. And spare me the shore lights baloney, lame excuses.

The lady on board that house boat said to the press the boat was coming at a high rate of speed and it wasn't slowing down. doesn't matter where everyone stands on the issue the guys in deep doo doo.

Not sure why you need a 45', million dollar boat on that small, dirty, shallow winnebago lake, and the Fox river is even worse, to show off would be the only reason I see.

Lots of folks would say the same things about the boats most of us run, regardless of where it is we run them (or how little they actually cost compared to what people *think* they cost).

This **** happens all the time.

When we lived in Fla, a center console drilled a cruiser, at anchor in the Keys, at night, w/his anchor light on!

Then fled the scene.

Ive done enough night time boating to know I don’t like it.

At night, on the water, your eyes can play tricks on you.
So can your brain.

There are barge accidents all the time.
Poorly lit, huge but low to the water, barely moving.
If your watching it, following it, as it gets dark, that’s one thing.

Come from opposite directions on the Ohio river etc, around a bend, barge is doing 10 mph and your doing 40….., that’s a 50 mph close rate.
Everyone in your boat will die.

Add to that, the things we see floating, during the day…., that there’s no way you’d see at night!

Then add the idiots (mostly fisherman) w/no lights!

A guy left a popular water front pub by us in Fla in a center console, after dark, after spending the day at the pub, hit a channel marker leaving the pub, that pitched his wife out of the boat, into the marker, and killed her!

That’s why I do my best to not boat after dark.

Yeah it’s fun for everyone on board but, just because you got away w/it don’t mean you will next time!

Fat, Drunk and stupid is no way to go through life Son.

Think you missed my point .
You don`t need a 45' boat to handle 2' waves.