Law Enforcement Activities News

The U.S. Coast Guard has rejected comments by a Chinese diplomat that its recent boardings of Chinese fishing boats in the Pacific Islands alongside local police are illegal, saying the joint patrols are at the behest of Pacific nations to protect coastal fisheries.Reuters reported last month that six Chinese fishing boats were found to be violating Vanuatu's fisheries law after being inspected by local police who were on board the first U.S. Coast Guard boat to patrol the waters of the Pacific Islands nation.China's Ambassador to New Zealand Wang Xiaolong…

The U.S. Coast Guard and Kiribati police boarded two Chinese fishing boats during a patrol against illegal fishing in the Pacific Islands nation's vast exclusive economic zone this month but found no issues aboard, a coast guard official said.The United States is seeking a bigger role for its coast guard in helping remote Pacific Islands nations monitor millions of kilometres of ocean - a rich tuna fishing ground - a move that also boosts surveillance as a rivalry with China over security ties in the region intensifies.Reuters reported on Friday that Chinese police are working in Kiribati…

China's coast guard said on Sunday it will strengthen its law enforcement activities and carry out regular patrols around a small group of Taiwanese-controlled islands off the Chinese coast as tensions rise over the deaths of two Chinese nationals.Taiwan on Thursday defended the actions of its coast guard after two people on a Chinese speedboat, which got too close to a frontline Taiwanese island, died when their boat overturned while trying to flee a coast guard ship.

The Philippines and China traded accusations on Sunday over a collision of their vessels near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea as tensions over claims in the vital waterway escalate.The Philippine coast guard accused China of firing water cannons and ramming resupply vessels and a coast guard ship, causing "serious engine damage" to one, while China's coast guard said the Philippine vessel intentionally rammed its ship.China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce…

Annapolis, Md. boatbuilder Ocean Craft Marine has delivered a new law enforcement boat to the Black Diamond Police Department in Black Diamond, Wash.The 6.5-meter aluminum police boat is primed to tackle a wide range of tasks, including search and rescue operations, surveillance and law enforcement activities. It is equipped with cutting-edge navigational systems, state-of-the-art communication tools and specialized law enforcement equipment, the builder said."The addition of…

On April 14 in testimony before the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Tom Allegretti, President & CEO of The American Waterways Operators (AWO), will press for continued defense of the Jones Act and a uniform federal framework for vessel discharge regulation. The hearing will focus on the status and implementation of maritime transportation safety and stewardship programs and rulemakings. The Jones Act…

The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Diligence is scheduled to return to their homeport in Wilmington Saturday following a 45-day patrol in the Caribbean Sea. During their patrol, the Diligence crew conducted search and rescue operations off the west coast of Cuba and conducted drug interdiction operations in the vicinity of Columbia and Panama. In anticipation of Aviation Standardization, a three-day assessment of the Diligence crew's flight operations capabilities scheduled for early October, the crew practiced flight operations their first evening underway. An MH-65C Dolphin helicopter crew from Coast Guard Air Station Savannah in Savannah, Georgia, met the cutter crew to conduct deck landings, helicopter in flight refueling (HIFR) and vertical replenishment (VERTREP) exercises.

The U.S. Navy accepted delivery of USNS Fall River (JHSV 4) from Austal USA yesterday, a week shy of six months from the date they took delivery of JHSV 3. This is the fourth Joint High Speed Vessel (JHSV) delivered to date for the JHSV Program which totals 10 ships at over $1.6 billion. Regarding the delivery, Austal USA President Craig Perciavalle said, “Delivery of this ship to the Navy is the culmination of many hours of hard work and dedication by Austal USA’s incredible shipbuilding professionals, as well as our teammates from General Dynamics AIS and the Navy.

Metal Shark now offers Volvo Penta diesel sterndrives in its 29 Defiant patrol boats for customers requiring optimum performance, durability and maneuverability. The 29 Defiant can now be ordered with twin Volvo Penta D4-225 sterndrives. The first boat has just been placed into service by the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. The Volvo Penta D4-225 is a four-cylinder 3.7-liter engine designed specifically for commercial marine applications. The electronically controlled common rail fuel system provides the performance required for applications requiring fast acceleration and high top speed. The Volvo Penta DPH Duoprop robust high-speed drives are designed to handle massive torque forces while providing high efficiency at all speeds, safe handling and easy maneuvering.

Maritime industry business intelligence provider PortVision says that its CEO, Dean Rosenberg, testified before the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation. "Yesterday I was honored to have the opportunity to testify before the US House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation. The purpose of the hearing was to focus on new ocean technologies, how these technologies can improve government performance, and any impediments that exist in the use of these technologies. As Chairman Duncan Hunter’s office said in a press release announcing the hearing, understanding and monitoring our oceans and how they are being used is vital to our national defense…

The ongoing maritime VSAT installations are part of KVH’s 10-year contract with the U.S. KVH Industries, Inc., said it has surpassed the 100-vessel mark in its 10-year contract to supply the next-generation satellite communications solution for the U.S. Coast Guard’s fleet of small cutters. To date, KVH’s TracPhone V7  systems have been deployed on 105 USCG vessels across eight different classes of cutters, and KVH’s mini-VSAT Broadband service has provided 29.2 terabytes of data and more than 835,000 Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) minutes.

Austal christening of 'USNS Choctaw County' (JHSV 2) at its Mobile, Alabama shipyard, the second of a nine-ship US$1.6-billion contract with US Navy. The ship was named Choctaw County to honor the contributions of the men and women of rural America. Three counties in America, located in Mississippi, Alabama, and Oklahoma, share the name. The ceremony was held in Austal’s final assembly bay under the ship with over 600 guests in attendance. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus was the principal speaker at the event.

Admiral Robert Natter, Commander in Chief of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet, and Vice Adm. Thad Allen, Commander of the Coast Guard Atlantic Area, jointly announced the assignment of four Cyclone-Class Navy Patrol Coastal (PC) ships in support of the nation’s homeland security Operation Noble Eagle. Two additional PCs will be assigned to the Pacific Coast. For the first time, U.S. Navy ships will be employed jointly with the U.S. Coast Guard to help protect our nation’s coastline, ports and waterways from terrorist attack. “The Atlantic Fleet is working closely with the Coast Guard to ensure the security of our Gulf and east coast ports,” said Admiral Natter. “These ships will be used for coastal patrol and interdiction efforts with the Coast Guard.

Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta presented 18 Transportation 9-11 Medals to government security officials and commission the Coast Guard’s newest anti-terror team at the Coast Guard base on Terminal Island, 2 p.m. Sunday, September 8. The new medal is awarded to employees of the Department of Transportation and private citizens for meritorious service resulting from the unique and outstanding achievement in response to the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. The commissioning ceremony for Maritime Safety and Security Team (MSST) 91103 is a military ceremony that marks the operational status of the unit. The MSST is a specialized fast-response unit created in response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11.

Coast Guard Pacific Area is set to commission a new port security unit (PSU 312). Vice Adm. Harvey Johnson, commander of Coast Guard Pacific Area, will be the presiding official for the ceremony in which Cdr. Donald G. Huenefeld will assume responsibility for PSU 312. PSUs provide a force of six active duty and 140 reserve members who possess specialized skills, capabilities and expertise to perform a broad range of port security and harbor defense missions. They are the model on which Coast Guard law enforcement detachments and maritime safety and security teams are based. PSUs are capable of augmenting Coast Guard or Department of Defense forces during major marine events or law enforcement operations focused primarily in ports, harbors, internal waterways and coastal regions.

In a meeting with Congressman Ike Skelton (D-MO), U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld confirmed that the Pentagon has no plans to recommend changes to the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits the participation of active duty military forces in domestic law enforcement activities. On September 21, Skelton sent a letter to the President asking him to clarify remarks he made in a speech that appeared to call for an increased role for the military in domestic emergency response. Skelton questioned whether the President intended to seek a waiver to the Posse Comitatus Act or to request a full rewrite of the Act. Following Hurricane Katrina, the President directed Executive branch agencies to compile lessons learned during the response and recovery effort.