ECOs conducting fishing compliance checks statewide encountered subjects with creative hiding places and interesting explanations in recent weeks. Here are some of their more notable cases:
- On April 17, ECO Maynard observed two subjects under the Throgs Neck Bridge at Little Bay Park near Fort Totten, Queens County, moving rocks and placing items in a bucket. Officer Maynard approached the individuals as they left the area and observed numerous mussels in the bucket. The ECO issued one subject a ticket for taking shellfish from uncertified waters. Shellfish taken from waters that are not seasonally certified may be illegally sold to unsuspecting buyers who could get sick from consuming the fish. Tickets are returnable to Queens Criminal Court.
- On April 29, ECOs Johnson and Walraven inspected a vessel and observed 40 live herring in a tank and 212 dead herring in a cooler. One of the anglers claimed to be in the process of obtaining his marine commercial permit but stated he had not yet received it. The live herring were returned to the water, and the deceased fish were confiscated for evidence. Both anglers received tickets for taking herring over the limit, commercially fishing without a license, and taking herring by means not allowed on a permit.
- A few days later on May 4, during heavy rains, ECO Walraven ticketed two anglers at Rondout Creek after finding them in possession of 41 herring, more than double their allowance under the law. The individuals were charged with taking fish over the limit and ordered to return the live fish to the water. The tickets are returnable to the Town of Esopus Court.
- On April 30, ECO Parker received reports regarding gill nets set in the Hudson River in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess County. Officer Parker contacted ECO Wamsley, who covers the area, and ECO Wamsley responded to the location the next morning. The Officer observed a camouflage boat retrieving the net and returning to shore. Officer Wamsley approached the area undetected and observed the individual remove 69 illegally taken river herring from the gill net. The subject admitted to violations including leaving the net out overnight, unattended, and staked down to shore. The individual received four tickets currently pending in the Town of Hyde Park Court.
- On April 30, ECO Maynard responded to a complaint of an angler on a kayak illegally taking undersized tautog (blackfish) at Floyd Bennet Field by the Marine Parkway Bridge in Kings County. Officer Maynard observed a legal-size blackfish in plain view while interviewing the angler but discovered a black bag in the center compartment of the kayak containing five undersized blackfish. Officer Maynard issued two tickets to the angler for taking undersized marine fish and taking marine fish more than the legal bag limit. New York State DEC Recreational Fishing regulations allow anglers to keep up to two tautog at least 16 inches long. The subject was allowed to keep the one legal size (19-inch) tautog he possessed because he had a valid marine registration. The illegal fish were confiscated, and tickets are returnable to Kings New York Criminal Court.
- ECO Day issued several tickets in early May to anglers catching undersized striped bass at Sunken Meadow State Park in Smithtown, Suffolk County. Three anglers attempted to conceal the fish under rain gear and were charged with possessing undersized fish, failing to release fish without due harm, and one individual received an additional ticket for failure to possess a valid marine registry. A week later, ECO Day observed four anglers burying undersized striped bass in the sand. When confronted, the anglers told ECOs Cacciola and Day that they hadn’t caught any fish, but the ECOs dug up the buried fish quickly and issued several tickets to the group including possession of undersized striped bass, no marine registry, and targeting striped bass with J-hooks.
- On May 13, ECOs Noble and Pansini and Lieutenant Auguscinski conducted overnight boat patrols in Queens and Raritan Bay, Richmond County, focused on marine fishing and navigation offenses. The Officers inspected several vessels and observed violations including fish outside legal size and possession limits. ECOs issued 14 tickets for a variety of Environmental Conservation Law and navigation law offenses and confiscated nine fish as evidence.
