Man jailed after tying boat to closed Beaufort dock goes to trial. Here’s the verdict
The verdict is in for the Port Royal couple charged in July with trespassing for tying up their boat at the closed Waterfront Park day dock in Beaufort: Guilty.
Despite being a misdemeanor case, the trespassing incident, which happened July 12, drew widespread interest because it involved Benji Gecy, a well-known mortgage broker, and occurred at the widely-used day dock at to the Waterfront Park promenade during the height of the Water Festival.
After a three-hour jury trial Friday, Benji Gecy and his wife, Christina Gecy, were found guilty of trespassing. Benji Gecy was fined $50 and Christina, $257.
Benji Gecy was arrested following his interaction with police inside the Lost Local restaurant on Bay Street when he refused to accept the trespassing ticket and spent 20 hours at the Beaufort County Detention Center.
The restaurant is located on Bay Street near the dock.
On Wednesday, when reached by the Beaufort Gazette and Island Packet, Gecy said he will appeal the verdict. He continues to argue that dangerous lightning conditions forced him and his family to go ashore and tie up at the closed dock.
“I wouldn’t do anything different,” Gecy said. “I don’t have any regrets. Maybe I should have taken the ticket, but there’s no crime in not accepting the ticket.”
Once ashore, he and his family ended up at the restaurant.
The city closed the entire promenade, including the day dock, on June 30 because of structural concerns. Gecy said he didn’t know it had been closed, but would have stopped at the dock anyway because of the lightning conditions.
Police spokeswoman Lori Evans said previously the day dock was clearly marked with signs that said, “No trespassing, violators will be prosecuted.” Gecy, she added, was directed to another emergency docking location that was nearby before he was detained.
Police Chief Stephenie Price declined to comment on the case specifics Wednesday.
“The criminal justice system worked,” Price said. “We just want people to be safe.”
The Gecys, who were boating with family and friends, invoked the doctrine of necessity at the trial, arguing an act of God made it impossible to meet the standards of the law.
Gecy says he drove by the day dock the next day. A ski show team performing during the festival, he said, was using the same dock he was arrested for using.
“I just don’t think it is fair,” he said.
In April, the city hired O’Quinn Marine to modify the day dock gangway so it goes up and over the closed promenade. When the modification is complete, the dock will be reopened and visitors will be able to tie up and enter Waterfront Park without walking on the closed promenade.
The promenade will remain closed for a few years until it’s replaced. On Monday, a committee studying different alternatives voted to forward its preferred plan to the City Council.
