HOUSTON — The Coast Guard along with the National Marine Fisheries Service seized 2,700 pounds of catch, Tuesday evening, after boarding a fishing vessel near the jetties off Cameron, Louisiana.
A Station Lake Charles boarding team was on a routine boarding when they discovered the fishing vessel Kathleen Yvonne was not equipped with the legally required turtle excluder devices. The boarding team escorted the vessel to Cameron Fish House, where they were met by the National Marine Fisheries Service personnel to seize the catch.
“The case on Tuesday was an unfortunate instance where we encountered a fisherman who demonstrated little-to-no regard for the fishing regulations enforced by Federal Regulations,” said Lt. j.g. David Rehfuss, a command duty officer at Sector Houston-Galveston. “Those regulations exist to control the shrimp and fish populations and ensure availability for future generations.”
A turtle excluder device, or TED, is a specialized device that allows a captured sea turtle to escape when caught in a fisherman's net. According to the Title 50, Section 223 of the United States Code of Federal Regulations all commercial fishing vessels must be equipped with these devices.