March 7, 2012 – The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, in a recent undercover investigation, cited 38 passengers of a recreational fishing vessel for illegally catching over 800 black sea bass, which is out of season. The boat’s captain is currently under investigation by the DEP, but under New Jersey law party boat captains and crew are not held liable for passengers’ illegally caught fish. The black sea bass is currently subject to a restricted fishing season, which this year runs from May 28 to September 11 and from November 1 to December 31.
As it has since 1976, the party boat Jamaica left the dock at Bogan’s Basin in Brielle late on Feb. 17 carrying passengers out to sea for an overnight fishing trip. But this time, there were more than just fishermen on board.
Working off a tip, undercover conservation officers from the state Department of Environmental Protection’s Division of Fish and Wildlife mingled with the anglers during the 19-hour trip. By the end, the fishermen came away with more than the 2,400 pounds of fish they caught.
The law enforcement officers — two undercover and seven uniformed officers waiting on the dock — issued at least 53 summonses to 38 people for possession of black sea bass out of season. The haul: A total of 819 black sea bass.
The conservation officers confiscated the total catch and sold it at market value, said Larry Hajna, a spokesman for the DEP. The department does not discuss details of tips, he said.
Jamaica’s captain, Howard Bogan, is under investigation along with the vessel, Hajna said.
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Black sea bass are not catch-and-release fish.
They have a swim bladder that enables them to maintain their buoyancy in deep water. When the fish are reeled up from the depths, their swim bladder expands and explodes, releasing gasses into the body cavity. The fish then can no longer return to the bottom, which makes releasing under-sized fish nearly impossible. Instead of swimming, the fish float on the surface and die.
Read the full article at the Asbury Park Press.