As reported in the San Luis Obispo’s The Tribune, a homeless man from California has been jailed for catching and cooking an endangered species of fish – a steelhead trout, from San Luis Obispo Creek.
With a group of other men, Victor Manuel Silva was convicted of “illegally taking and possessing wildlife.” Fish and Game said that since the large fish was a egg-carrying female that the poaching was especially problematic.
From the article:
Silva was arrested Sunday at 5 p.m. at the Elks Lane Bridge over San Luis Obispo Creek. Warden Teri Hickey had responded to the area as a result of a tip.
When she arrived, she found a group of three or four homeless men camped out beneath the bridge, cooking a large fish over a fire and getting ready to eat it.
“They had slices of lemon and a loaf of sourdough bread,” Fish and Game Lt. Dean Hileman said. “It was almost a meal fit for a king.”
…Silva was prosecuted for violating state Fish and Game rules but could have also been charged with federal violations. It is illegal to harm or damage a federally protected species.
Bill Struble, a special agent with the National Marine Fisheries Service, said he does not think Silva will be charged in federal court. It is unusual for someone to be charged in federal court after being convicted in a state court, he said.
“The state system was the better fit,” he said. “I was in court to make sure that the prosecutor was aware that there was a violation of the Endangered Species Act and that this was more serious than a regular poaching case.”
And upon reading the many comments left by readers, I thought I would share a few:
Gone2Dogs wrote on 01/29/2009 10:31:11 AM:
The bottom line is the sport or commercial fisherman pays a fee for their activity. This fee goes to protect California wildlife. As a sport fisherman I have a rule book to read every season that makes it very clear what I can and can’t do. I know exactly what is going to happen if my fish is the wrong size or species. The fact that this man is homeless has no bearing what so ever. If all homeless people were allowed to catch and kill anything they want, the damage to our environment would be amazing. My favorite is when your out in the woods and a truck full of illegals (12) of them arrives to hunt. They take 10 of them to the top of a canyon and leave 2 with guns at the bottom. They then chase everything down the canyon. Bucks, does, or anything that runs by gets shot. The weapon of choice is a .22 LR since it is quite. I am not comparing illegals to homeless or passing judgment on either. Follow the rules, That’s all.
BillyRay wrote on 01/29/2009 07:22:56 AM:
Let’s starve all humans and save the freakin’ fish. Environmentalists are sick wackos and their thinking is mentally challenged. If they were in this guys position, they would do the same thing. WE ALL KNOW IT. Environmentalists are a bunch of hypocritical, double standard, selfish, wimpy nitwits. I say we round them up, drop them in the desert and see if they can survive on their own. Maybe this would weed out a few of these nutcases.
SloSalsero wrote on 01/29/2009 10:39:55 AM:
“Well, it’s the law.” – a consistent comment I’ve read thus far. What an ignorant and dim-witted response that is. Don’t they teach critical thinking in schools anymore? So many just blindly follow and never bother to question? Does it make sense? How can we make this into a positive? Does it benefit society to put this guy in jail? After all is said and done, the fish is still dead, this guy is still homeless, and now we’ve just added the cost of a 10-day jail sentence to our already dwindling budget.
Furthermore, a lot of people seem quick to judge this man and condemn him from the comfort of their cushy couches, mocha lattes, and matching Banana Republic outfits. I can understand why a homeless man would kill a fish. I don’t understand why seemingly civilized and compassionate people are so quick to nail him to the wall.
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