Calif. Lobsterman Convicted of Abandoning Traps
A California lobster fisherman has been convicted in Santa Barbara Superior Court of a multitude of commercial lobster fishing violations, including abandoning traps, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) said March 5.
It was the third commercial lobster poaching conviction for Christopher Miller, 67, of Los Alamos, since 2014.
According to the CDFW, Miller pled guilty to falsifying commercial fishing records, harvesting lobster out of season, then abandoning at least 156 commercial lobster traps around Santa Cruz Island and the Santa Barbara Harbor.
After closure of the 2021-22 commercial lobster season and being ordered to remove his lobster traps by CDFW wildlife officers, Miller failed to retrieve any of his traps, posing a significant and detrimental hazar...