Posts: 143
Location: Kentucky | First of all, please keep the Kentucky joke's to a minimum. I read this article yesterday and I'm ashamed that it happened in Kentucky, however this could happen anywhere. I am most ashamed at the justice system for not giving them the electric chair. They are just lucky that I didn't catch them. Then we all would be in jail. It really make's me mad, and I know you guy's will find it as disturbing as I did. This was in our local Sunday news paper. Muskie-snagging arrests have officials rethinking lawSOME WANT VIOLATORS TO PAY RESTITUTION FOR SPORT FISH'S VALUE. A recent case in which three men were fined for illegally snagging muskies in Cave Run Lake has wildlife officials considering some regulation changes. We need to rethink the way the regulation is written, and make the penalities more severe," said Benjy Kinman, director of fisheries for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. Kinman said at issue is how to make people convicted of illegal snagging pay restitution based on the sport value of the fish. Jeremy Cornett, 21, of Jeffersonville in Montgomery County; Stephen Brewer, 20, of Denniston in Menifee County; and Joshua Lucas, 19, of Frenchburg in Menifee County paid a small fine plus court costs for illegally snagging the muskies in the headwaters of Cave Run Lake in April, 2004. We've had restitution fees on deer and wild turkey for years," said Col. David Casey, of the department's law-enforcement division. But we've never had any on fish. Kentucky Wildlife and Boating Officer Randy Joseph observed the three men as they illegally snagged the fish in a shallow tributary, Kinman said. Joseph and officer Shane Ratliff seized more than 20 illegally snagged muskies that ranged in length from 32 to 49 inches. Kinman said he's not aware of another snagging case of this magnitude in Kentucky. A 40-inch muskie, which weighs about 20 pounds, is considered a trophy fish in the department's Trophy Fish/Master Angler program. Muskie fishing represents a significant economic impact to the local economy," said Kinman. Cave Run Lake, one of the top 10 muskie lakes in the country, is an annual stop on the Professional Muskie Tournament Trail (PMTT). Anglers travel a long way to come and fish for these trophy fish," said Kinman. A department spokesman said the economic value of muskie fishing trips on Cave Run Lake reached nearly a half-million dollars in 2003, and that the typical muskie angler on Cave Run Lake spends about $54.38 per trip. Like salmon, river-run muskies travel into very shallow streams to spawn, making them vulnerable to snagging and gigging. (Tips from the public) are the best defense against this kind of behavior," Casey said. "Resource violations are often difficult to detect because people go to great effort to conceal their activities. Assistance from the public is critical to catch these violators.
Edited by RiverMusky 7/13/2004 3:18 AM
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Sad news in Kentucky (Snagging Muskie)