The California Fish and Game Commission has revoked the commercial fishing licenses and permits of two fishermen after extensive histories of violations in the lobster and Dungeness crab fisheries.
At its June 11-12, 2025, meeting, the Commission – acting on California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) recommendations – revoked the commercial fishing license and lobster operator permit of Christopher James Miller, 68, of Santa Barbara, and the commercial fishing license and Dungeness crab permit of Ronald Ghera, 45, of Fortuna.
Miller’s violations, spanning a decade, included abandoning 156 lobster traps around Santa Barbara and the Northern Channel Islands, leaving traps in the water after the season closure, failing to retrieve baited traps and filing inaccurate catch records.
Ghera’s record included abandoning 94 crab traps after the 2023 season and 74 after the 2024 season, failing to service traps within the required 96 hours, failing to submit mandatory reports, and fishing with untagged traps and improperly marked buoys.
“The majority of people who fish commercially are law-abiding and care about our fisheries,” said Nathaniel Arnold, Chief of the CDFW Law Enforcement Division. “There are a few individuals, however, who choose to partake in commercial poaching. These individuals will eventually be caught and will likely lose the privilege to commercially fish in this state through either criminal or administrative actions.”
CDFW emphasizes that compliance with commercial fishing regulations – particularly removing traps at the end of each season—is essential. Those who abandon traps not only endanger marine mammals and other wildlife that can become trapped or entangled in derelict gear, but they can also cause shortened fishing seasons for law-abiding fishers who depend on those opportunities for their livelihood.
Whether it’s hunting, recreational fishing, or commercial fishing, the privilege to harvest California’s fish and wildlife requires a high degree of mutual trust between the public and law enforcement. CDFW’s wildlife officers are entrusted with protecting the state’s marine fish and wildlife species by patrolling and enforcing the law along California’s 840-mile coastline, and together with the California Fish and Game Commission, will continue to review violations of commercial fishing cases and take decisive administrative action to prevent bad actors from further harming California’s ocean environment.
See something serious? Report it and help protect California’s fish and wildlife. You can:
- Call CalTIP at (888) 334-2258 – available 24/7
- Text “CALTIP” + your message to 847411 (tip411).
- Download the CalTIP app from Apple’s App Store or Google Play to send tips anonymously.
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Revoking licenses will do nothing. They should have their boats seized, and do prison time for destroying our fisheries.
Hey Karen, do you know how much a lobster trap even costs? Or how about how much just the bait costs for 240 lobster traps? Or how much some of the commercial fishing license cost? What do you think these guys didn’t have a place to store their equipment so they just left them out at sea? Probably wasn’t any kind of big storms or other kind of factors like other fisherman taking their catch and or moving the traps to an unknown place !!! Hell no they were just out there throwing perfectly good traps overboard for good fun ! Because fuel bait ice and the cost for boat compliance is so inexpensive they have the money to just piss off all their gear……. I wouldn’t go barking out who needs to go to prison for anything unless you’re a judge ! Why don’t you go out to the harbor and tell the fisherman what you think ? Maybe they will take you out fishing ???? Show you what the bottom of the ocean looks like out there? Ungreatfull idiot flapping your big mouth about stuff you don’t know about! Nobody’s getting rich fishing especially with keyboard cops like yourself making stupid comments
DIABLO – as ridiculous as ZIPs is, saying it’s too expensive or burdensome to follow the law isn’t an excuse. This wasn’t a one-time offense. If this is your livelihood, do it right like everyone else does.
People in the same region and business should play by the same rules. When that is not the case, cheaters gain an advantage when what they deserve is a penalty or disqualification.
Our local fisherfolk seem to be able to follow the rules. What makes these clowns different and special?
The lady doth protest too much, methinks. But glad to know you support a few poachers working to destroy our fisheries.
P.S. My family has been diving these waters since the 1950’s.
Does your family currently own a commercial dive boat?
LOL, since the 50s. Go home colonizer.
” My family has been diving these waters since the 1950’s.” Were they in the TV show Sea Hunt?
zippy: Agree 100%.
I agree completely but I don’t think prison is the cure for this, and I don’t think zippy should be recommend any prison sentence or commercial fishing boat impounding while presiding over the http://www.justicecourthouse.com bench! they are harvesting animals from the ocean it’s not local, state, or even federal, it’s a worldwide activity or crime on the planets eco system the state is just upset about possible loss of tax revenue jj
Looks more like they’re protecting the ecosystem despite loss of tax revenue.
Fishermen often envision themselves as eco-warriors, even as they’re busily vacuuming up the sea life.
Reminds me how duck hunters like to expound upon how they are “saving ducks,” by working to preserve watersheds —- as they sit there with their 12-gauge semi-automatic or pump-action shotguns,, slaughtering ducks.
Why did it take a decade of violations for action to be taken?
Probably because CDFW was giving them the benefit of the doubt. Maybe in a given year severe weather would displace traps, for example. But a clear pattern of scofflaw behavior over a decade is hard to ignore, or to defend.