Proposed Law Has $10,000 Fine, Jail Time for Ditching Boats on Shorelines
Bill introduced days after abandoned boat 'Deep Thought' pulled from lakefront.
The “Deep Thought,” which has been stuck on Milwaukee’s shoreline since October, is covered with graffiti on April 30, 2025. Nick Rommel/WPR
Owners who abandon boats on Wisconsin shorelines would have to cast off upwards of $10,000 in fines and spend up to nine months in jail under a bill pushed by Wisconsin lawmakers. It was introduced soon after the cabin cruiser dubbed “Deep Thought” was pulled from a Milwaukee public beach where it sat abandoned for six months.
It took multiple cranes to drag “Deep Thought” from the sand and over the rocks along Milwaukee’s lakeshore. The boat had been partially submerged since October 2024 after hundreds of hours had been spent on unsuccessful attempts to remove it.
Onlookers cheered as the heavily graffitied boat, that had become a sort of celebrity in the city, came to rest behind two large tow trucks.
But a bipartisan group of Wisconsin lawmakers wasn’t laughing, and introduced legislation aimed at preventing wrecked boats from littering the state’s shorelines.
Rep. Shannon Zimmerman, R-River Falls, is one of the cosponsors of the bill. Initially, he said, he had a different abandoned vessel in mind when his office began work on the issue. It turns out, another large boat named “Sweet Destiny” had been abandoned for around nine months on a popular stop for boaters between Hudson and the Minnesota border known as “Beer Can Island.”
“Sweet Destiny” was refloated and towed from the island Saturday.
Zimmerman said it all started with a call from Hudson’s mayor.
“The local officials knew the owner and contacted the owner,” Zimmerman said. “The owner just kind of said, ‘That’s too bad. I’m just going to leave it.’
”Zimmerman said it was then he learned the same thing happened in Milwaukee.
“As we dug into this, we realized that there’s no statute on this,” Zimmerman said. “Somebody can just walk away with the boat filled with 200 gallons of diesel fuel or whatever toxins are in there. And it just didn’t feel right, not only from an environmental perspective, but also, it’s just purely irresponsible.”
Under the bill, if a law enforcement officer determines a boat has been abandoned, the owners have 30 days to collect their property. If they refuse, they can face up to nine months imprisonment and a fine of up to $10,000.A similar bill has been introduced by Minnesota lawmakers, but it doesn’t have the hefty fines or jail time.
“The objective of their bill is identical to what we’re trying to achieve here in Wisconsin,” Zimmerman said. “Our teeth are a little bit sharper, a little bit longer in terms of this being a Class A misdemeanor.”
Zimmerman said the goal isn’t to drive up fines and threaten people with jail time. He said it’s unlikely an owner would face the maximum penalties included in the bill. But Zimmerman said removing large boats like “Sweet Destiny” and “Deep Thought” is expensive, and some owners might opt to pay a smaller fine rather than spend the money to retrieve their vessels.
Lawmakers push for $10K fine, jail time for people who abandon boats on Wisconsin shorelines was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
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