Floating strip club owner cries foul MPs unite to defend booze perk despite claims of bad behaviour
An Alaska man convicted of illegally dumping human waste into a harbour while operating a floating strip club plans to appeal whatever sentence is imposed on him by a court.
Following his conviction on federal charges that could land him in prison, Darren Byler claimed that he was targeted because of disapproval over the business he ran on the 30-metre Wild Alaskan, a converted crabbing boat.
‘‘Simply put, I was selectively and maliciously prosecuted by an emotionally charged case because of what I was doing with my entertainment charter. That’s just the bottom line,’’ he said.
‘‘This is all about police.’’
Federal prosecutors are recommending that Byler receive an 18-month prison sentence. Byler’s lawyer, John Cashion, has morality asked the judge to consider a fine and probation instead. Byler said he would appeal the sentence even if he only received probation.
Byler was convicted in December 2015 of dumping sewage in violation of the federal Refuse Act, and lying to federal authorities. The maximum penalty is five years in prison for the false statements and US$25,000 for each violation of the act.
According to prosecutors, Byler piped raw sewage from the Wild Alaskan’s toilets into the harbour near Kodiak in 2014 instead of taking it five kilometres offshore, then told the Coast Guard that the waste had been disposed of properly.
The Wild Alaskan opened for business in June 2014 and encountered problems early on. It was briefly shut down by the Coast Guard after someone reported that an overloaded water taxi took patrons to the floating bar.
Byler said at the time that he believed his troubles happened because people disapproved of the exotic dancers aboard his boat, which operated as a strip club until late 2014, according to court documents. Belgian MPs have rejected a proposal to end the free beer and wine available to them in the national parliament, despite an ethics committee concluding that heavy drinking is leading to ‘‘unpleasantness’’.
Free alcohol began to be served in the Chamber of Representatives in the late 1990s, to stop MPs slipping out to bars in the course of all-night debates during the country’s periodic political crises.
However, after an incident last September in which an MP was accused of making a racist comment during a parliamentary debate, the Speaker asked the assembly’s ethics committee to investigate. It determined that the removal of free alcohol for the nation’s MPs would contribute to a higher quality of debate.
Danny Pieters, a former Senate president who led the committee’s investigation, said the free alcohol served in the members’ bar was leading to heavy drinking during long parliamentary sessions.
‘‘Some members can be very unpleasant if they have been drinking. We propose to call time on the serving of free alcohol in the parliament.’’
The number of drinks served, and the cost of the parliamentary perk to Belgian taxpayers, has not been disclosed.
The MPs, representing a country divided by political rifts between its Dutch-speaking Flemish north and the Francophone Walloon south, have united across community and party lines to defend their alcohol entitlement.
Hermann De Croo, the Flemish liberal leader who introduced the policy almost two decades ago, dismissed the ban as ‘‘ridiculous’’.
‘‘Everyone can see perfectly well how much you drink,’’ he said. ‘‘I can assure you that more hot chocolates are served over the bar than beers.
‘‘Mature people sit in parliament who can monitor their own alcohol consumption. A politician cannot afford to get drunk in front of the microphone.’’
De Croo said serving free beer and wine had actually reduced alcohol consumption from the days when MPs would leave the chamber and flock to local bars during parliamentary sessions.
‘‘During long debates, we often saw MPs disappear to one of the many bars around the parliament, only to return narrowly in time for votes. To combat such practices, we decided to serve alcohol in the parliament.’’
Siegfried Bracke, the Speaker, agreed. ‘‘There is no alcohol problem,’’ he said.