one ******* fish cop

[Avidhuntr]

Well I decided to head out for one last ice fishing trip on the weekend and thought id try somewhere new with a friend. We went to Island Lake and set up the ice shack, after fishing for a bit we stepped outside to drill a few more holes along shore when we noticed a Fish cop heading toward us and one B lining it for our shack, we chatted with the old guy who's territory it was and he gave us a few tips and headed toward our shack where the young officer had let him self in and was routing through our bags and checking out what we were using for bait, now my mistake i didn't realize that you cant use minnows in that lake and there are 2 rods in the shack with minnows on them, at this point I am starting to realize that the young guy has a chip off his shoulder. My friend gave his licence to the old guy and he gave it back, mine was inside the shack so i had to go in and get it for the young guy and after handing him it he asked the other officer if he had my friends licence to which he said yes he had seen it but the young guy spouts off "oh are you just going too remember all his info" so he gets my friends licence again and heads to the truck, after waiting a bit for them to get back i realize its the 31st and we will probably be getting the book! Well when they get back the old guy gives my friend a written warning and the young guy gives me a $200 fine! could not believe it! I understand that we made a mistake and that its my responsibility to know the rules but I don't think he needed to give me a 200 fine! After having a few words with him and asking to see wherein the regs it was stated, he starts looking at ES2 not even the zone we are in! and then after looking for a while in both ES1 and ES2 he says that its not his zone and just says well its common knowledge! and calls the old guy over to show me, pretty sad he couldn't even point out the rules when giving a ticket! another thing why would only 1 person get a ticket? He never even asked if one of the rods was mine! and $200 wow, I have never had a single bad experience with fish cops before I'm not a repeat offender who needs the max fine, just a guy trying to get into the woods to enjoy nature, well $^@% me i guess.

[Weedy1]

You screwed up, got caught, admit it, so pay the fine. Doesn't matter who or how the officer that nailed you acted. You're sounding like you wanted your buddy to get nailed too. You should be happy that didn't happen. You need to check ALL the regs before fishing anywhere. I have no sympathy for poachers.

Tough audience eh? Just like your buddy the "fish cop".

[huntsfurfish]

Originally Posted by Weedy1

You screwed up, got caught, admit it, so pay the fine. Doesn't matter who or how the officer that nailed you acted. You're sounding like you wanted your buddy to get nailed too. You should be happy that didn't happen. You need to check ALL the regs before fishing anywhere. I have no sympathy for poachers.

Tough audience eh? Just like your buddy the "fish cop".

Pretty much this^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

[Hunter4ever12]

So the lures with the bait weren’t in the water only on surface? If that’s the case I think a warning should only be placed. Technically you weren’t fishing with bait,only had it on your lure. Now you can assume all you want but it was not in the water while they were being checked....if that’s how it went down.

[Travco1]

Fight it you will get off .

[fishpro]

Well just be glad the max fine is low and only one of you got ticketed.

[Spooner]

Originally Posted by Travco1

Fight it you will get off .

Likely this.

Think about how much it costs to pay those 2 guys to drive $100k vehicle around.

Whether you had ill intent or not is irrelevant to the tax man.

Catch any fish?

[Isopod]

Originally Posted by Hunter4ever12

So the lures with the bait weren’t in the water only on surface? If that’s the case I think a warning should only be placed. Technically you weren’t fishing with bait,only had it on your lure.

Given any consideration for "beyond reasonable doubt" I don't think there is a judge in the world who would accept that people had rods with minnows baited up in their shack but weren't guilty of fishing with minnows. Someone could try that defense, but they might get hit up for hundreds more dollars to cover "court costs" since it could be perceived as just wasting the court's time with a ridiculous and desperate defense. Even if they weren't hit up for court costs, they'd still just be wasting their own time.

[airbornedeerhunter]

[cschache]

Obviously if you had bait on your hooks you were probably fishing with them and even if you weren't the intent to fish with bait was there. If it were me and a buddy I would give him $100 and split the ticket and next time make sure that I read and knew the regs before I went out and if I couldn't find it in the regs and was unsure I would call the local fish and feathers to confirm. NOT worth fighting over. Pay and chalk it up for experience. My 2 cents.

[ShortsideK]

Wah! Wah!
Guilty! Pay the man!
I don't buy any of your excuses.

[Supergrit]

Maybe the young fish cop will learn a little more about his job and how to treat people. Mays well pay and move on.

[Jigger]

I'd feel quite stupid and embaressed if i didn't know the regs for a lake i was fishing. Pretty basic part of sport fishing and takes minutes to look up your lake.

[RavYak]

First of all. Breath... Ranting isn't helping anything... Now lets figure out what actually happened and come to a logical conclusion on how to move forward...

I assume you were fishing either Island Lake near Athabasca or Smokey Lake? You say you were using minnows, I assume they were dead? What does your ticket actually say on it? I assume it lists the lake and what you are being charged with?

There are no bait restrictions on either of the Island Lakes mentioned earlier(except for the general bait restrictions such as no live bait). Bait fish are a common restriction in most(maybe all, can't remember) ES zones so it is possible the guy just didn't know/understand that NB1 and NB2 do not have those same restrictions. If that is the case I do not understand why the older guy didn't correct him though.

Based on what you have posted and assuming your ticket says what I believe you were implying, ie that you were charged with using dead minnows on one of the Island Lakes outlined above, then you were wrongfully charged. Fight the charge and you will win easily.

As for the fine, $200 is a set value for using prohibited bait not a maximum charge. The following link gives details of offences and their associated fines. If your ticket only gives you the section numbers you should be able to figure it out here.

http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/r...e-12.html#h-40

For the guys saying read the regs. Make sure you get the facts straight before you post... The OP didn't do himself credit by ranting but based on the details given it doesn't look like he was actually in the wrong like most of you are claiming he is...

[58thecat]

Jeepers relax, years back a bunch of us got caught, not knowing the regs fishing etc just buy and go so along comes the law, after a long discussion mentioned all,the total amount of fines to be added upsay which one of you gets the only one I'm writing today, writes it, warns us and carries on...funny how,,when caught some get defensive....he should have told you the amount total could have been paid in fines, shut you up, then warned and settled on one infraction...oh well eh first world problems.

[Bushrat]

Your post was hard to understand. What was the fine for, not having a license or for using bait? Did your friend have a valid license or was his expired too?

[Fishwhere]

Originally Posted by cschache

Obviously if you had bait on your hooks you were probably fishing with them and even if you weren't the intent to fish with bait was there. If it were me and a buddy I would give him $100 and split the ticket and next time make sure that I read and knew the regs before I went out and if I couldn't find it in the regs and was unsure I would call the local fish and feathers to confirm. NOT worth fighting over. Pay and chalk it up for experience. My 2 cents.

What he said.

Sucks but would be the same thing as speeding somewhere and getting pulled over. Your fault, but chance to not get a ticket on cops discretion. In defence of the fish cop guys i have found they have gotten much much better on dealing with people than they were 10-15 years ago. Obviously not every single one, but as a whole i have had lots of encounters and never a horrible experience especially lately. I would hope my friend pitched in for the ticket, unless he was just being brought along.

[damaltor]

Originally Posted by RavYak

First of all. Breath... Ranting isn't helping anything... Now lets figure out what actually happened and come to a logical conclusion on how to move forward...

I assume you were fishing either Island Lake near Athabasca or Smokey Lake? You say you were using minnows, I assume they were dead? What does your ticket actually say on it? I assume it lists the lake and what you are being charged with?

There are no bait restrictions on either of the Island Lakes mentioned earlier(except for the general bait restrictions such as no live bait). Bait fish are a common restriction in most(maybe all, can't remember) ES zones so it is possible the guy just didn't know/understand that NB1 and NB2 do not have those same restrictions. If that is the case I do not understand why the older guy didn't correct him though.

Based on what you have posted and assuming your ticket says what I believe you were implying, ie that you were charged with using dead minnows on one of the Island Lakes outlined above, then you were wrongfully charged. Fight the charge and you will win easily.

As for the fine, $200 is a set value for using prohibited bait not a maximum charge. The following link gives details of offences and their associated fines. If your ticket only gives you the section numbers you should be able to figure it out here.

http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/r...e-12.html#h-40

For the guys saying read the regs. Make sure you get the facts straight before you post... The OP didn't do himself credit by ranting but based on the details given it doesn't look like he was actually in the wrong like most of you are claiming he is...

Except of course, if the OP was fishing Island Lake in the Crowsnest, which is ES1 and there would be a bait ban.

[MooseRiverTrapper]

Another reason they ticket you is the assumption the other ten times you were at the lake and didn’t get checked you used bait.

[LJalberta]

Seems fair. When we're mistaken about the law and break it, that doesn't qualify as a legitimate defence to excuse yourself of liability. When the officer gives us a warning/break, it's just a great bonus and act of kindness that they have no obligation to do. I've gotten speeding tickets where I believed the speed limit was higher. Did I mean to speed? No. But it was my responsibility as a driver to ensure I knew the speed limits where I was operating a vehicle. The same goes for fishing. If we fish or hunt, the responsibility is 100% on us to know the regulations. It's nice to get a break when we make an error, but by no means are we entitled to it.

[fallen1817]

Life goes on. As said. You made a mistake, and you got caught. Pay the fine, and consider it a lesson. Behaviour of the issuing officer doesn't have any relation to the ticket you got.

[mk63]

What makes you think your above the Law? you broke the rules and got caught. Based on your attitude I wish the fish cop would have thrown the book at you. No excuse in this day in age for not knowing the regulations.

[bucksman]

He admit he didn't read the regs so didn't really do himself any favors.
The young officer just "let him self in and was routing through your bags" without your permission??
Were the rods with minnows on them physically in the water??
You had to go back to your shack to get your licence?
Why would you be "getting the book" on the 31st?
He gave you a ticket on the 31st and you are ranting on the 2nd?
I don't know the regs for the lake you were at and RavYak states there is no bait ban and the officer couldn't find it in the regs and also stated that it was "common knowledge" Sooo what was the ticket for?
So many questions

[LCCFisherman]

Haha I drove by while you were having your bad day. Read the regs bud... should know better then to think you can use minnows in any ES zone.

[Pikebreath]

Island Lake, Crowsnest Pass.....

"ES1 Watershed Unit Regulations
Bait Fishing,...

Fishing with Bait Fish is NOT allowed in ES1 except at the following waters:
Paine (Mami) Lake
Lees Lake
Ghost Reservoir
Pine Coulee Reservoir...."

[Wolftrapper]

Originally Posted by LJalberta

Seems fair. When we're mistaken about the law and break it, that doesn't qualify as a legitimate defence to excuse yourself of liability. When the officer gives us a warning/break, it's just a great bonus and act of kindness that they have no obligation to do. I've gotten speeding tickets where I believed the speed limit was higher. Did I mean to speed? No. But it was my responsibility as a driver to ensure I knew the speed limits where I was operating a vehicle. The same goes for fishing. If we fish or hunt, the responsibility is 100% on us to know the regulations. It's nice to get a break when we make an error, but by no means are we entitled to it.

Very well said.
Also we only hear one side of the story in these cases.

[Roderek]

Also guessing he wasn't very pleasant with the young officer, which probably didn't help his case. His buddy probably wasn't rude.

[SNAPFisher]

Originally Posted by damaltor

Except of course, if the OP was fishing Island Lake in the Crowsnest, which is ES1 and there would be a bait ban.

I had the same reaction as Rav. Kind of hard to figure out where he was talking about so thanks.

You never know if another person called RAP due to them using bait or the officers observed them from a distance which they have been known to do. In the end, they are just doing their jobs and maybe a little overzealous. Pay and move on.

[RavYak]

Originally Posted by damaltor

Except of course, if the OP was fishing Island Lake in the Crowsnest, which is ES1 and there would be a bait ban.

Yes that would be correct(except only bait fish ban), I didn't know about that lake and it isn't listed in the regs(due to being a general regulation stocked trout lake). An interesting lake choice considering it hasn't been stocked in a few years now and doesn't look like a very good over wintering lake.

To the OP if that is the lake you were fishing then you were in the wrong. The info is under the general ES1 regs which is where you should have looked for your regs... Bait fish bans are on all ES1, ES2 and ES3 lakes unless listed in the zones exceptions.

[LCCFisherman]

Its stocked every year RayVak