Saunderstown Man Arrested After Boat Crash That Sent Passenger Overboard: Cops

JAMESTOWN, RI — A Saunderstown man was charged with operating a watercraft under the influence after a boat collision that sent a passenger overboard, police said.

Dawson Hodgson, 47, was arrested late Friday on the operating under the influence charge, as well as charges of watercraft chemical test refusal and failure to obey a lawful order, the Jamestown Police Department said in a media release.

Police received a 911 call that, based on GPS coordinates, appeared to be originating from the waterway off East Ferry in Jamestown, according to the release.

"Officers were able to establish contact with the caller, who reported that he had just been involved in a marine
accident with another vessel," the release said. "The caller advised that his passenger had been ejected from the boat during the collision but had subsequently been located and safely brought back aboard."

Police and Jamestown Fire & Rescue responded to the East Ferry area and the operator of the other boat — Hodgson — was "able to navigate the 20-foot fiberglass vessel back to a slip at East Ferry, where emergency personnel met him," the release said.

Hodgson refused to perform field sobriety tests, according to the release, and was arrested.

The passenger who went into the water was evaluated and declined medical treatment, the release said.

"Hodgson sustained minor injuries as a result of the accident and also declined medical treatment," the release said.

Following the incident, the Jamestown Police Department, Jamestown Police Drone Unit, Jamestown Fire Department, Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM), and the United States Coast Guard conducted a thorough search of the area to ensure no additional individuals were in the water or otherwise in distress," according to the release.

"The subsequent investigation determined that Hodgson's vessel had struck an unoccupied, moored vessel in the
Jamestown mooring field," the release said.

Jamestown Police Chief James P. Campbell touched on the dangers of operating a vehicle — on land or water — under the influence.

"Whether you are operating a car or a boat, impairment can have tragic consequences," Campbell said in the release.

"Alcohol-related crashes are one of the leading causes of death in recreational boating and we strictly enforce our operating under the influence laws," Campbell said.

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