§ 300 Vessel Damage Misdemeanor

• •You must act on purpose and with bad intent (willfully and maliciously).
• •The boat has to be small – under 10 gross tons.
• •The boat must belong to someone else.
• •Doing any of those things (cut, break, injure, sink, or set adrift) is a misdemeanor.

John sees his neighbor's 8‑ton fishing boat tied at the dock and, out of spite, he cuts the hull so the boat takes on water and sinks.

Because John purposely hurt the neighbor's boat, which is less than 10 gross tons and not his, the law says he can be charged with a misdemeanor.