Poacher caught - again!

[The Dad Fisherman]

Don't sweat it.....No Biggie. everybody gets caught up in a moment sometimes....It might even happen to me once in awhile

Originally Posted by dannyplug1

I want to apologise for my comment. In retrospect i regret posting it and understand why it was pulled. I feel very frustrated. People like this should be made an example of. Unfortunatly the legal system will not seriously punish this thief nor make him an example that would encourage others not to follow in his path. Charlie

[Redsoxticket]

Require poachers to place a permanent glow in the dark sticker near the registration number on the bow of the boat the signifies the owner is a poacher.
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[BostonFisher]

Originally Posted by Redsoxticket

Require poachers to place a permanent glow in the dark sticker near the registration number on the bow of the boat the signifies the owner is a poacher.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Love that idea. Take his boat and all of their tackle and rods too.

I was fishing Boston Harbor a few years ago and these guys next to us were poaching flounder. We explained the regulations to them in case they didn't know (in a not so polite way)... So they started reeling the small fish up on the other side of their boat. My friend wanted to "board them" but instead we called the Env Police. Got the run around at first but finally they got an officer on the line who cared and went over there and busted them with a cooler full of shorts. All they got was a little fine and a scolding.

[FishermanTim]

How about they tatoo a big "P" on his forehead?

But seriously, there has to be some serious deterrent or nothing will change.

What SHOULD happen: If caught as a REPEAT offender, lose license FOREVER and lose all gear related to the act (Boat, transport vehicle, all tackle) and a fine.

What WILL happen: Absolutely nothing! Maybe a small fine and ANOTHER slap on the wrist.

Unless they stiffen th penalties, nothing will ever change.
This jackhole will only pass on the fine to his next charter by "slightly" increasing the price.

I say hit them where it will hurt: take them out of the business entirely and permanently!
(I'm not talking any form of violence, but rather legal action.)

[Mike P]

Originally Posted by Clammer

Mike P

don,t limit it to those 3 states . come spend some time in RI waters / & you,ll notice alot of mass anglers /commercial ..fishing RI ,,,,,,,,, short ass run from westport to RI waters .

@ least in RI / you can,t just buy a license .. I think there are 308 total & most of them are [us] senior citizens .

In Mass .ya got the cash , ya get the license .................... I think a couple of years ago .I heard a number around 5000 ................................ if that the case just about every yahoo ..... that gets lucky & catches a 34" or over sells it .
there are some commando striper addicts on this site ..... I hear the stories of the hours . of no sleep , no food , driving miles & miles ...........in quest of Mrs. Cow .
most are young & all by choice .
try keeping up with a real commercial R&R ......... for the guy that is making a living on the water / not expenses ;;
I personally don,t know of any person ......that comes near to the time , effort , danger that these guys put in .
Its not like [[BACK IN THE DAY] .......you caught it >>>>>>>>>> you sold it .all it had to be was 16 " ...........Now ................... with open & close seasons & days of the week ....... you HAVE to go when its open ..no taking that day off cuz its raining & blowin 35 from the NE .
no sundays @ the beach with the family .in mass its a 5 fish limit on Sunday ......but when RI is open ..Sunday is a full day ....................... & friday & Saturday are the days you can,t fish commercially for Fluke or bass .
Its kinda like the deadliest Catch >>>>>> you snooze you loose .;;

been there / done that >>>>> now I pay the price ... no complaining ,.it was a choice I made many years ago .when I did have options

Oh, I agree--I'm not singling out just the RI and CT--and even some NY guys--who have Mass licenses and bring in fish from their waters. There are at least as many SE Mass guys running out there, too.

I have always said that the Mass license is way too cheap, and way too easy to get. Some guys make a living commercial fishing--they get their boat license early in the year, they fish every species in season, they're grandfathered into the fluke fishery, and they also buy a master species commercial shellfish license. And many, many people just get the boat permit and striped bass endorsement and fish the second Tuesday in July until the season is closed, usually by the end of August.

[StriperWriter]

I agree. The penalties need to be severe for a repeat offender, and like DZ mentioned, if they find a hidden box with fish in it, obviously intended for poaching, should be licence revoked for life, either jail time or a huge monetary fine, and all gear taken. I work in a prison, and I gotta say if that guy was in my jail, it'd be hard not to be the hand of justice myself...

[Swimmer]

Originally Posted by Nebe

a hydraulic hatch? Thats some james bond stuff right there..

I wonder if he has a hide in his car as well.

The officers could have confiscated his boat and all equipment as well. They could also issue summons to everyone that was on board because they particpated in the crime also.

I think the mere fact that he had an electronic hide for the poached/stolen (it was stolen from us) fish he should be bound over to superior court if at all possible. This smells of not just ...............well thats all I have to say

I wonder why he wasn't arrested. Poaching is a crime punishable by imprisonment, at leats I think it is, I'll have to look that up, I believe which makes what took place a misdomeanor in the presence of an officer.

[Islander77]

Now see if he was a real commercial guy ie federal that lie wouldbof been ten gs.... Reality lieing to monitors or observers or feds is ten thousand finebfor us.....
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[Islander77]

Oh and for the record yes i live in ri fish outta chatham... We rod and reel for bass and tuna as well as gillnet... But we fish mass waters only for bass.... As thumper can tell youvits a different kind of expierience....now the down side.... I make my living on the water not just on nice days... We are not fair weather fisherman... Oh it is blowin and crappy... Oh well it a 4-10 hour ride to the gear... Head down do it... The thing that gets me is how does mass have so many commercial guys??? Seriously chatham has been a fuster cluck to get in or out of lately... All bass guys... Just wondering what they do the other 11months a year to make their money....
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[Joe]

$450 - that's less than half of what a DEM enforcement guy costs state per day in salary, benefits, and the thirty+ years he'll spend in retirement. The only time they catch anyone is when a dime is dropped. BFD - they caught one poacher.

[Mike P]

Originally Posted by Islander77

The thing that gets me is how does mass have so many commercial guys??? Seriously chatham has been a fuster cluck to get in or out of lately... All bass guys... Just wondering what they do the other 11months a year to make their money....
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They work for the phone company, N-star, they teach school, they're doctors, lawyers and Indian chiefs, they work in the trades, they sit behind a desk.

Welcome to Massachusetts, where any Tom #^&#^&#^&#^& or Harry can pony up $65 and be a "commercial fisherman".

[StriperWriter]

Swimmer, I believe it is punishable by jail time. I took a guy to court one time and his charge on the paperwork read, "Posession of short lobster" so Id imagine it would be the same for fish.

[Thumper]

Originally Posted by Islander77

Oh and for the record yes i live in ri fish outta chatham... We rod and reel for bass and tuna as well as gillnet... But we fish mass waters only for bass.... As thumper can tell youvits a different kind of expierience....now the down side.... I make my living on the water not just on nice days... We are not fair weather fisherman... Oh it is blowin and crappy... Oh well it a 4-10 hour ride to the gear... Head down do it... The thing that gets me is how does mass have so many commercial guys??? Seriously chatham has been a fuster cluck to get in or out of lately... All bass guys... Just wondering what they do the other 11months a year to make their money....
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

ya man it was a friggen zoo out there. I will tell you what tho nothin beats calling into work and fishing 13 14hrs and goin in the next day with 3rd degree sunburn. Just like mike p and ur paps said every tom, #^&#^&#^&#^& and harry is comm up there. What it came down to that day was fish every troll and ppl just staring like wtf r thoes guys doin?
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[Sundowner]

I understand that each coastal state has thier boundaries, but shouldnt this be a federal offense seeing how this is a migrating fish and each state has its offenders and victims. Victims being either the bass, the ecology, the recreational fisher, the commercial fisher, the b&t stores, tourism, etc..
I am no gem, but I dont take away from other peoples enjoyment and priveledges

[numbskull]

.....but you don't spend the money in MA that you earn from catching fish in MA. Makes no economic sense at all for the state to let out of state commercials fish or sell here, unless they feel the MA commercial fleet by itself could not fill the state's quota. Gives away a significant part of the financial benefit from the state's commercial quota to neighboring states. Hard to see why they allow it.

[CowHunter]

Originally Posted by numbskull

.....but you don't spend the money in MA that you earn from catching fish in MA. Makes no economic sense at all for the state to let out of state commercials fish or sell here, unless they feel the MA commercial fleet by itself could not fill the state's quota. Gives away a significant part of the financial benefit from the state's commercial quota to neighboring states. Hard to see why they allow it.

Out of staters pay way more for a license, ($460 myself), then you spend money on Fuel, Lodging, Food, slip / ramp fees, tackle... How is that not an economic benefit???

If you didnt have out of staters than the rec guys would be bitchin' about the com guys a few more weeks as the season stays open! :-))))

[Diggin Jiggin]

Originally Posted by CowHunter

Out of staters pay way more for a license, ($460 myself), then you spend money on Fuel, Lodging, Food, slip / ramp fees, tackle... How is that not an economic benefit???

If you didnt have out of staters than the rec guys would be bitchin' about the com guys a few more weeks as the season stays open!

As a rec only guy it makes no difference at all to me how long it takes the comm guys to fill the state quota. The quota doesn't change so what difference does it make how ling it takes to fill.

If we didn't have out of state guys filling our state quota, then the guys that do live here & fish commercially would get a few more weeks to catch & sell fish & they would make more money is a season.

[numbskull]

Originally Posted by CowHunter

Out of staters pay way more for a license, ($460 myself), then you spend money on Fuel, Lodging, Food, slip / ramp fees, tackle... How is that not an economic benefit???

If you didnt have out of staters than the rec guys would be bitchin' about the com guys a few more weeks as the season stays open!

A lot of what you post is self-serving, but this is ridiculous.

You make a profit in MA commercial fishing and you take it home with you.......otherwise you wouldn't be here. If you are as good as you make yourself out to be, then it is not a small profit either. That money benefits the state you spend it in. Presumably you pay taxes on it (although I'd bet many guys don't) and use the rest for your family's living expenses. That money in turn gets taxed and spent by others where you live (multiplier effect). If a million dollars leaves MA it results in several million dollars of lost economic activity. That is money that could be helping the people of MA.

So explain to me again how it is in the State's interest to allow out of state utilization of our commercial quota?

[ProfessorM]

license is way too cheap for out of stater's. Hell you paid for that on a crappy trip with the price this year. I too don't care about time it takes to fill the limit. RI people aren't spending on food and lodging, etc.. I'd bet only a very small minority do as you do. Most just take a short trip over the border, make their $$ and spend all their cash in their own back yard. I guess you can tell I am against out of state use. Heck you may as well buy a summer home up here and become a resident for the summer.

[Mr. Sandman]

This is nothing. There is way too much illegal fishing buying/selling going on and no one is enforcing much of anything. 450 buck fine is laughable and provides more incentive to fish illegally than deterrent.

Game-fish status is the simplest answer given the level of enforcement we will ever have. Any complex quotas or slot limits CAN NOT be enforced and are worthless.


Gamefish status, 1 fish rec take (any-size).

[CowHunter]

Originally Posted by numbskull

A lot of what you post is self-serving, but this is ridiculous.

You make a profit in MA commercial fishing and you take it home with you.......otherwise you wouldn't be here. If you are as good as you make yourself out to be, then it is not a small profit either. That money benefits the state you spend it in. Presumably you pay taxes on it (although I'd bet many guys don't) and use the rest for your family's living expenses. That money in turn gets taxed and spent by others where you live (multiplier effect). If a million dollars leaves MA it results in several million dollars of lost economic activity. That is money that could be helping the people of MA.

So explain to me again how it is in the State's interest to allow out of state utilization of our commercial quota?

I know I spend several thousand in mass on gas, food, lodging every year, every dollar spent in mass has an economic benefit. Any diferent than rec guys traveling to other states to recreationally fish. Cmon, We all know how expensive fishing is...
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[ecduzitgood]

Originally Posted by CowHunter

I know I spend several thousand in mass on gas, food, lodging every year, every dollar spent in mass has an economic benefit. Any diferent than rec guys traveling to other states to recreationally fish. Cmon, We all know how expensive fishing is...
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You wouldn't be spending the money unless you were getting a return on the investment.

[Sea Dangles]

$460 is a few good fish.It really makes no sense for anyone in the commonwealth.I feel if there were reciprocation it would be worth considering,otherwise it is lose,lose for the state.Oh well,something else for people to whine about obviously.

[animal]

I think this is getting off track.This is about a poaching dirtbag.Not about rec/comm.
Oh yeah,I say throw everything that they can,at him,including illegal charters if that's the case(I think I read he's not a Cpt,right)If he's chartering illegally,that fine would probably be more than the poaching fines.

[numbskull]

Originally Posted by CowHunter

I know I spend several thousand in mass on gas, food, lodging every year, every dollar spent in mass has an economic benefit. Any diferent than rec guys traveling to other states to recreationally fish. Cmon, We all know how expensive fishing is...
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

The quota is worth a fixed number of dollars to the state. A guy who comes in and spends 2000 dollars and leaves with 8000 dollars reduces the value of that quota by 8000 dollars and creates a net loss for the state of 6000 dollars initially, but probably closer to 10,000 dollars after multiplier effects are accounted for.

So, again, as a citizen of MA why should my family, my neighbors, and myself lose 10,000 dollars of economic activity so you can come here and sell fish? Talk about a resource grab....this one is a grand-daddy.

[CowHunter]

Originally Posted by numbskull

The quota is worth a fixed number of dollars to the state. A guy who comes in and spends 2000 dollars and leaves with 8000 dollars reduces the value of that quota by 8000 dollars and creates a net loss for the state of 6000 dollars initially, but probably closer to 10,000 dollars after multiplier effects are accounted for.

So, again, as a citizen of MA why should my family, my neighbors, and myself lose 10,000 dollars of economic activity so you can come here and sell fish? Talk about a resource grab....this one is a grand-daddy.

Mass guys sell in Ri, Ct guys sell in ri, mass, Ri guys sell on mass and so on... It goes on with the bigger draggers, comm vessels selling out way more than a grand of fish in different states, ur talking millions. There were some scallops coming in from Va into mass??? Fluke draggers from nc selling out in Nj??? It's all really damn confusing..... Anyway, I gotta finish up the night shift and get ready for Tuesday, wed, thurs!!!!
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[CowHunter]

Originally Posted by CowHunter

Mass guys sell in Ri, Ct guys sell in ri, mass, Ri guys sell on mass and so on... It goes on with the bigger draggers, comm vessels selling out way more than a grand of fish in different states, ur talking millions. There were some scallops coming in from Va into mass??? Fluke draggers from nc selling out in Nj? Then all the stripers sold in mass go to auction get shipped to Va, even Canada? Why are the stripers being sold to out of staters?? It's all really damn confusing..... Anyway, I gotta finish up the night shift and get ready for Tuesday, wed, thurs!!!!
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[Green Light]

Originally Posted by ThrowingTimber

All this posting of this and that should happen falls on deaf ears posted on the web. Best bet is to send same to dem etcetc. in reality the fine will once again be less than the profit from the sale of said fish so really nothing resolved....
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

Good point.

[CowHunter]

Originally Posted by Fish360

Good point.

It really sucks for the striped bass but it's job security for the ep's and fines are revenue for the state.... So habitual offenders generate revenue for the state and in return an economic benefit for the state??? In this incident wasn't it a mass boat taking bass out of Ri? It was Ri that economically benefited on this as i hear he was more than eager to pay the fine and move on...
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[numbskull]

Originally Posted by CowHunter

Mass guys sell in Ri, Ct guys sell in ri, mass, Ri guys sell on mass and so on... It goes on with the bigger draggers, comm vessels selling out way more than a grand of fish in different states, ur talking millions. There were some scallops coming in from Va into mass??? Fluke draggers from nc selling out in Nj??? It's all really damn confusing..... Anyway, I gotta finish up the night shift and get ready for Tuesday, wed, thurs!!!!
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

It is not confusing at all, and I'm sure you are smart enough to know that there is an interstate commerce in fish taken from federal waters that has nothing to do with state quotas, as well as an interstate commerce in fish caught legally in state waters but governed by a coast-wide quota.

You are also smart enough to know that you have no valid argument as to why the current system allowing you to profit from the quota allocated to the residents of MA should be allowed to stand. Hence your obvious obfuscations and sudden convenient confusion.

But for now, the system is what it is, you are well within your rights to fish here,.....and from my perspective dead fish are dead fish so I don't really care who kills them. Even though it would be nice to see more of the profit from killing them benefit the citizens of my state, it isn't happening anytime soon, so for now your can feel safe being smug........which obviously you also know.....but please spare us the phony rationalizations as to why it is all good and grand for the rest of us.