Sergeant Donald Plant (772) 220-7153
dplant@sheriff.martin.fl.us


The Martin County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit has the daunting task of patrolling 165 miles of waterways from Lake Okeechobee to the Atlantic Ocean, including 23 miles of coastline. The Sheriffs Office is the primary agency for marine law enforcement, boating safety, narcotic and illegal immigrant interdiction and search and rescue in Martin County. With nearly 16,000 registered vessels in Martin County alone, the Marine Unit is on duty seven days a week 365 days a year. The Marine Unit works closely with a number of agencies including U.S. Customs, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Coast Guard.

Five Deputies are assigned to the Marine Unit: B.J. Brown, Justin Lundstedt, Donald Plant, John Howell and Jeff Snider. These five deputies have over 100 years of combined law enforcement experience and training qualification’s ranging from US Merchant Marine Officer to SWAT trained sniper. In 2010 a side scanning sonar was installed on the unit’s 25’ Parker cabin boat. This system allows for underwater search and recovery of items such as cars, vessels, safes and drowning victims. With a 200 foot wide scanning range at a speed of 10 mph this is much safer and more efficient than using a diver. Other boats in the fleet used by the Marine Unit include a 30’ Sea Vee and two 28’ Contenders, one of which was seized for illegal immigrant smuggling. The Marine Unit also has smaller boats that can be launched into lakes and canals if needed. Nine life-saving awards and a unit citation for maintaining constant vigil over the waters and citizenry of Martin county have been awarded to the Marine Unit in past years.