BUI Defense in Fredericksburg
More Than 100 Years of Combined Experience for Your Virginia BUI Defense
A boating under the influence charge can expose you to criminal penalties and restrictions on operating a watercraft. Unlike a motor vehicle DUI, these cases arise under Virginia boating law and involve questions about vessel operation, marine law enforcement, chemical testing, and conditions on the water.
At Butler Moss O'Neal, PLC, we draw on more than 100 years of combined attorney experience to represent clients facing criminal charges, including DUI and related offenses. We review the charge and court listed on your paperwork, the basis for the vessel stop, officer observations, field sobriety testing, breath or blood testing, and statements made during the encounter.
Call (540) 306-5780 to discuss your BUI charge, approaching court date, and options based on the facts of your case.
Virginia BUI Law Under § 29.1-738
Virginia Code § 29.1-738 prohibits operating a watercraft or motorboat that is underway while impaired by alcohol, drugs, or a combination of the two. The statute also addresses specified blood concentrations of certain controlled substances. The prosecution must prove the elements of the charged offense, not merely that alcohol or another substance was present.
Operation includes actual physical control of a watercraft or motorboat. A vessel is underway when it isn’t anchored, made fast to shore, or aground. Whether the vessel met that definition, who controlled it, and what evidence indicates impairment can become central questions in the defense.
Criminal Penalties & Boating Restrictions After a BUI Conviction
A violation of Virginia Code § 29.1-738 is a Class 1 misdemeanor. According to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources, a conviction can carry up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. Virginia law also provides for restrictions on operating a watercraft or motorboat.
A boating privilege restriction is separate from the driver’s license consequences associated with a motor vehicle DUI. A conviction under the boating statute doesn’t automatically suspend a Virginia driver’s license. The consequences can depend on the specific charge, prior record, testing evidence, refusal allegations, accident claims, and the court’s rulings.
How Breath, Blood, & Observation Evidence Can Affect Your Case
Virginia boating law contains separate provisions for preliminary breath analysis, chemical testing, implied consent, and evidentiary presumptions. Implied consent can require someone operating a watercraft under covered circumstances to submit to legally authorized breath or blood testing. A preliminary breath analysis is an initial alcohol screening performed with a portable device, while later chemical test results may be offered as evidence in court.
We examine whether officers had a lawful basis for the encounter, how testing equipment was used, whether required procedures were followed, and whether the results are reliable and admissible. Blood alcohol concentration is important evidence, but no single fact necessarily resolves the case.
Conditions on the water can affect how officers interpret a person’s behavior and test performance. Vessel movement, waves, lighting, weather, passenger activity, footwear, and medical or physical conditions may influence balance, coordination, speech, or field sobriety exercises. A refusal allegation can raise separate issues under the boating statutes, making it important to review what officers requested and how the encounter unfolded.
Direct Attorney Attention for Virginia BUI Defense
We begin by explaining the applicable law, identifying the prosecution’s evidence, and clarifying the decisions ahead. Our attorneys investigate why the vessel was stopped, whether it was underway, who had actual physical control, what officers observed, and whether testing complied with Virginia law. Depending on the circumstances, we may also review witness accounts, videos, photographs, dispatch records, and vessel information.
Clients receive direct, partner-level attention rather than having critical work delegated to a rotating group of junior attorneys. Nicole O’Neal was selected to the Super Lawyers Rising Stars list multiple times between 2021 and 2025. We use hourly billing based on hands-on time spent on the case and give candid advice when the likely value of a legal course doesn’t justify its cost.
Talk With Our Attorneys About Your Fredericksburg-Area BUI Charge
We represent clients charged with boating under the influence in Fredericksburg, Stafford County, and Spotsylvania County. The court named on the summons or warrant determines where the case proceeds and which local procedures apply. Fredericksburg General District Court and Stafford General District Court handle misdemeanor proceedings and preliminary hearings, although required appearances and deadlines depend on the individual case.
When contacting us, have your charging document, court date, and filing jurisdiction available. These details allow us to identify the procedural posture and focus the discussion on the evidence, immediate deadlines, and decisions ahead.
Call (540) 306-5780 to speak with Butler Moss O'Neal, PLC about your charge, court location, and available legal options.
They made going through a divorce as pleasant as can be... they kept me laughing when I felt like crying.
- L.F.
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Can a Virginia Court award a spouse military survivor coverage in a divorce?
Yes, Section 20-107.3(G)(2) authorizes the Circuit Court in a Virginia divorce to “order a party to designate a spouse or former spouse as irrevocable beneficiary during the lifetime of the beneficiary of all or a portion of any survivor benefit or annuity plan of whatsoever nature, but not to include a life insurance policy except to the extent permitted by Section 20-107.1:1.”
This includes the Survivor Benefit Plan, commonly referred to as SBP, which is available to spouse and former spouses of military service members.
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Can child support in Virginia be ordered to continue past the age of 18?
Yes. Section 20-124.2(C) of the Virginia Code provides that support will continue to be paid for any child over the age of 18 who is (i) a full-time high school student, (ii) not self-supporting, and (iii) living in the home of the party seeking or receiving child support until such child reaches the age of 19 or graduates from high school, whichever first occurs.
The court may also order the continuation of support for any child over the age of 18 who is (i) severely and permanently mentally or physically disabled, (ii) unable to live independently and support himself, and (iii) resides in the home of the parent seeking or receiving child support. In addition, the court may confirm a stipulation or agreement of the parties which extends a support obligation beyond when it would otherwise terminate as provided by law.
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When can a Virginia Court issue a Protective Order, and what can a Protective Order Do?
Protective Orders 101
In Virginia protective orders can be issued between family or household members under Virginia Code Section 16.1-253.1 or if the parties do not meet the definition of family or household member, under Virginia Code Section 19.2-152.9. Family or household members is defined by the Virginia Code as, “the person’s spouse, the person’s former spouse, the person’s parents, stepparents, children, stepchildren brothers, sisters, half-brothers, half-sisters, grandparents and grandchildren, in-laws, individuals with a child in common and individuals that cohabitate within the previous 12 months.”
Under Virginia Code Section 16.1-253.1, a preliminary protective order in cases of family abuse may be granted in an ex parte proceeding. Ex partemeans that only the petitioner goes before a judge seeking a protective order. The Court may grant the preliminary protective order upon an affidavit or sworn testimony by the Petitioner. In order to grant the preliminary protective order, the court must find the following: The Petitioner was the subject of an act involving violence, force, or threat that resulted in bodily injury or places one in reasonable apprehension of death, sexual assault, or bodily injury. The events alleged by the Petitioner under Virginia Code Section 16.1-253.1 must have taken place within a, “reasonable period of time.”
When granting a preliminary protective order, the Court may impose the following conditions: prohibit acts of family abuse, prohibit contact between family members, grant possession of residence to petitioner, grant possession of vehicles, grant possession of companion animals as defined and prohibit either party from cutting off utilities to homes.
Within 15 days of the issuance of a preliminary protective order, the court under Virginia Code Section 16.1-279.1 must hold a full hearing on the matter. This means that the Respondent has the ability to hear the evidence against them, confront their accuser, cross-examine the accuser and put on any evidence they wish for the court to hear. At the conclusion of the full hearing, if the court finds that by a preponderance of the evidence that the Petitioner has proven they are the victim of family abuse, a final protective order, for up to two years may be issued against the Respondent. At the conclusion of a full hearing for a protective order in the Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court, either party may appeal the outcome to the Circuit Court within 10 days of the ruling.
Individuals that do not meet the definition of family or household members may seek a protective order under Virginia Code Section 19.2-152.9, in the General District Court if they have been subjected to violence, force or threat.
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Can a Virginia court order that a parent pay college expenses for a child?Yes and no. Virginia law does not allow the court, on its own, to order that child support include the payment of college expenses. However, if the parents enter into a written agreement providing that one or both of the parents have to pay for college, the court can enforce the parents’ agreement.
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