39 Lobster Fishermen Accused of Violating Regulations

After a seven-month investigation, the state Department of Fish and Game has charged 39 licensed lobster fishermen in Southern California for violating California fishing laws, department officials said.

Seven fishermen have been convicted and cases are pending against 32 others, said Fish and Game Warden Kent Smirl, who led the investigation.

Cases will be filed against 10 others, he said, bringing the total to one-quarter of all the licensed lobster fishermen. About 200 fishermen hold permits to take lobsters off coastlines from San Diego to Santa Barbara, Smirl said.

Officials from the department’s Long Beach bureau conducted the most extensive investigation ever into records kept by Southern California’s lobster fishermen, Smirl said.

Poorly kept records are often used by fishermen to cover up sales on the black market and overfishing, which helps avoid paying taxes, he said.

Such violations, he said, cheat taxpayers and, when overfishing leads to a reduced population the next year, eventually drive up lobster prices for consumers.

Smirl said difficult conditions for fishermen this year led him to suspect fraud could be a problem. Fishermen saw falling prices for their catches and withering demand for lobster in Asia, one of their biggest markets, he said.

Violators face fines of up to $300 and the possibility of losing their licenses if they are caught again, Smirl said.