Anonymous asked this question on 4/15/2000:

What are the laws on finding an abandoned boat?

icarius31 gave this response on 4/15/2000:

The laws you asked about would be governed as to where said boat was recovered.Maritime law would take preference if found in offshore waters{ocean} or on inland waterways. Morally you should make an attempt to find the owner and work it out with him. If in offshore waters contact your nearest CoastGuard station. If inland you may have state laws that cover this.State laws are usually specific to that state. If this were me I would contact a Maritime lawyer and seek his advice.That would make it all nice and legal.

The average rating for this answer is 5.

Anonymous rated this answer a 5.

With the information I gave, I felt this was a pretty decent answer.Boat found,28ft. SeaRay. The cabin is locked,no keys. The previous owner was contacted and he had sold it to a Marina and this Marina was contacted and they knew nothing of the boat. The Sheriff's Dept. at first said that it was illegal to do what we did, then backed off. Then he said he had a buddy that would probably be interested in it. We are not willing to give it up at this point. Our main concern is that the Sheriff's office wants to come back while we are at work and get into the boat. Of course, we don't trust them, especially now that they have taken an interest in the boat. For all we know is that they could plant something on the boat and say they have to take it for evidence. The boat was found on the River bank,not anchored. It was first noted off shore,then was washed ashore. We agree that we should probably get a Lawyer. Would like more comments. Thank You.