[tlapinski]

Just posted on Facebook by RI DEM. Commercial fishermen remain their own worst enemy.

Yesterday, environmental police officers from DEM’s Division of Law Enforcement cited two Rhode Island residents who are Massachusetts commercial fisherman for being in possession of 38 striped bass believed to caught in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) - a portion of federal waters reserved for conserving and managing fishery stocks.
Officers working on information obtained through Operation Level Playing Field, a prolong law enforcement presence in the EEZ off the coast of Block Island to protect striped bass stocks began to investigate two fishermen believed to be fishing in the EEZ and selling their catch in Massachusetts. The practice of taking striped bass from Rhode Island state waters or the EEZ and selling them in Massachusetts is prohibited.
During the investigation, officers approached the two fishermen who were at a residence in West Greenwich and found them to be in possession of 38 striped bass with a total weight of 1,054 pounds. All of the fish were larger than the 34” minimum size and none of them had the right pectoral fin removed as required by regulation. Both fishermen were in violation of the possession limit of one fish per person as well as failing to clip the right pectoral fin of a striped bass 34 inches or larger in total length. The fish were seized as evidence.
The two fisherman, Robert Majors, age 41 of Bristol, Rhode Island and Peter Parente, age 53 of West Greenwich, Rhode Island were both summoned to the 3rd Division District Court for 37 counts of exceeding the daily possession limit of striped bass and 38 counts of possession of a striped bass, 34 inches or larger without having the right pectoral fin clipped. The fishermen potentially face $3,700 in fines - $100 for each fish illegally taken.
Adhering to the rules is not only good for the health of our fisheries; it’s the law. Rhode Island environmental police will continue their efforts to combat illegal fishing activity in both state and federal waters.
https://www.ri.gov/press/view/36569?...SFZwfN24V4JE2w