James W. Bunting, 44, of Georgetown, Del., Cory Tyler Lednum, 18, and Douglas Dale Mumford, 35, both of Selbyville, Del., and Kirby Edward Short, 37, of Bishopville, were each charged with two counts of harvesting striped bass from an area known as the Exclusive Economic Zone.
The EEZ, as it is known, begins three miles offshore, where state waters end, and extends to 200 miles out. Federal fisheries regulators closed all but a tiny segment of the EEZ to all striped bass possession or fishing.
NRP officers on a saturation patrol along the three-mile boundary found the four fishermen’s boat well into the EEZ as it was returning to Maryland waters. They escorted the vessel back to shore, where citations were issued.
The fish were seized and donated to the Diokinia Homess Shelter.
The four fishermen are scheduled to appear in Snow Hill District Court on Feb. 20. If found guilty, they could be fined a maximum of $250 for each fish.
I love the new design of their police trucks.
ReplyDeleteYeah. Real expensive! Defeats their ability to hide well in the woods to do their jobs. But hey, they wanna look like cops too!
DeleteThat's two years in a row for kirby
ReplyDelete"The Exclusive Economic Zone".
ReplyDeleteThe place where the state mercenaries steal your fish and bill you $250 a piece for the privilege.
The tyranny must end!
406-Poachers suck, and so do those that support them.
ReplyDeleteOut in the ocean? Its different like say in the nanticoke..... But the damn ocean? Smdh
DeletePoachers who disregard the laws that honest hard working commercial operators obey. I am glad they were caught and hope that the court imposes a stiff penalty...maybe including some community service at the land fill or sewage treatment plant.
ReplyDeleteI doubt his cooler of four fish hurt the commercial fishermen's net! And the commercial fishermen set the prices for the fish that no one can afford. Maybe the sewage plant can osmosis your brain!
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