Enforcement Actions

Read the semiannual document that lists enforcement actions taken in each division from July 1, 2012, through December 31, 2012.

On a weekly basis, we'll post highlights of our enforcement actions here as well as occasional examples of high-interest violation notices.

Weekly Highlights—September 23, 2013 

Northwest Division:

• A NOAA enforcement officer completed a three day Albacore Tuna patrol aboard a U.S. Coast Guard Cutter. More than ten vessels were boarded and inspected during the patrol with one receiving a warning for incomplete logbook entries.

 Pacific Islands Division:

• A NOAA enforcement officer responded to a complaint concerning two subjects that posted photos on Facebook depicting them posing within two to five feet of a resting Hawaiian monk seal and pup on the Big Island. The photos showed the adult female monk seal barking at the individuals. The subjects admitted to the violation and were issued Written Warnings.

Southeast Division:

• An OLE special agent initiated a significant Billfish Conservation Act investigation into marlin imported from the Philippines that had been sold by a company in Georgia to multiple retail outlets in two states. OLE is working with the distributor to have 5,000+ pounds recalled.

Southwest Division:

• OLE issued a verbal warning to an individual who threw a can of soda at a sea lion that had climbed on top of a sailboat in Newport Beach. The agent explained proper marine mammal deterrence methods and directed the individual to the Southwest Region website

Hefty Penalties for 86,000 lbs of Illegal Fluke—August 15, 2013

An investigation initiated in July 2010 by NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement into Research Set-Aside (RSA) program violations culminated in a guilty plea on August 15, 2013, by an East Meadow, New York, fisherman and his fish dealer company to wire fraud and falsifying federal records. Read the full story >>.