Paulinskill:

[AndyS]

On May 21, Conservation Police Officer Tyler Hausamann responded to a complaint of illegal fishing at the Paulina Dam section of the Paulinskill River in Blairstown, Warren County. Once there, CPO Hausamann observed several people near the dam. One person was fishing with rod and reel while others began to pack up. Suddenly, someone starting yelling and congratulating another person who surfaced in the spillway of the dam. The man, who was wearing goggles and carried a speargun, held a large bass on the end of the spear. The fish was placed into a blue bucket as the group quickly tried to pack up and leave, but were stopped by CPO Hausamann. The suspects denied having any fish, but CPO Hausamann was able to recover the blue bucket and speargun from one of the vehicles.

Fourteen fish - a collection of rainbow trout, tiger trout, largemouth bass and smallmouth bass - were in the bucket. All but one fish had spear holes in them. Seven summonses were issued for the violations, with penalties totaling $880. The cited violations included: fishing without a valid license, possession of trout without a trout stamp, taking bass during closed season, taking undersize bass, taking trout over the limit, and taking fish in an illegal manner.

If you witness violations or illegal activity, please call the 24-hour DEP hotline at 877-WARN-DEP (877-927-6337).

[thmyorke1]

Excellent work by the CPO.

Also great job to the poachers for doing their deeds in plain sight at a popular spot, lol. Fortunately these knuckleheads are ez to catch

[NJSquatch]

The $880 is not severe enough!

[TomKaye]

Confiscate the truck and the spear gun.

[FASTEDDIE29]

Saw this all over the place. Some people need to get back to work. These fish poachers are out numbering the Wardens. It’s happening all over the place. The fines imposed aren’t steep at all. Bastards!!!

[Jigman13]

You should see spruce run. Holy smokes. Guys running rampant keeping out of season fish, short fish, too many fish. Talked to the state park police last night up there and he flat out said "we're under-manned and cant keep up". Bc of that, the fines they're issuing are the "throwing the book at em'" kinda fines. Also guys w/o licenses, unregistered vehicles and illegal camping.

Glad they got those guys though. Who the f*** spear fishes in freshwater in NJ?! That's ridiculous.

[NJSquatch]

They could probably catch more guys if CO's weren't playing parking attendants. Memorial Day weekend they had 3 of the 8 guys in NNJ directing traffic at SR. Sometimes they need 4 guys! Talk about a waste of resources. SMH

I spoke with a CO while ice fishing regarding the fines. I think he said the fines haven't been modified in over 35 years (could be longer). To change the fines would require them to open up the NJAC laws and the fear is that law makers might try and ban or modify some types of hunting and fishing.

Other problem is the prosecutors view these types of crimes as a waste of their time and typically plea bargain with the defendant which get away with a slap on the wrist.

[Detour66]

Originally Posted by NJSquatch

The $880 is not severe enough!

I agree!

[bigfishy85]

What do we need to do to increase budget and hire appropriate number of wardens to police the 9million slobs? The most densely populated state with plenty of money is doing jack shit to protect the ever growing pressured resources. Feels like NJ doesn't care nearly as much as some other states

[buzzbaiter]

Fish Lives Matter.

Any idea what their nationalities were? I doubt this was local kids having fun. Sounds more like a foreign-born operation.