Unconstitutional? Carlos Rafael argues against vessel forfeiture, poses new buyer for fleet

September 20, 2017 National, New England

New Bedford, Massachusetts-based fishing magnate Carlos “Codfather” Rafael has challenged the government’s proposal to seize his fleet of 13 groundfish vessels, arguing that the act is unconstitutional, according to court documents filed by his legal team. Forfeiting the vessels and their corresponding permits, which are allegedly worth more than USD 30 million (EUR 25 million), would be a violation of the excessive fines clause of the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, Rafael’s lawyers said in court documents submitted for review to U.S. District Court judge William Young in Boston. click here to read the story 15:22

Local buyer for Carlos Rafael’s fishing permits, court documents say – Two prominent businesses in New Bedford possess the means to acquire the permits based on financial means and ability to operate a fleet of that size: Whaling City Seafood Display Auction and Eastern Fisheries. Neither returned requests for comment. click here to read the story 9/21, 16:09

arguing that the act is unconstitutional, Carlos Rafael, challenged the government’s proposal to seize, Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, U. S. District Court Judge William Young, violation of the excessive fines clause

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Ocean Resource Privatization

Articles Posted by Date
December 2024

M T W T F S S

1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

23 24 25 26 27 28 29

30 31

« Nov

December 2024
M	T	W	T	F	S	S
	1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30	31

The New England groundfish debacle (Part III): who or what is at fault? Nils E. Stolpe/FishNet

It took me a while to decide how to most accurately describe the situation that has been visited upon the New England fishing communities that are and since colonial times have been dependent on the groundfish fisheries.

NILS STOLPE: The New England groundfish debacle (Part IV): Is cutting back harvest really the answer?

While it’s a fact that’s hardly ever acknowledged, the assumption in fisheries management is that if the population of a stock of fish isn’t at some arbitrary level, it’s because of too much fishing. Hence the term “overfished.” Hence the mandated knee jerk reaction of the fisheries managers to not enough fish; cut back on fishing. What of other factors? They don’t count. It’s all about fishing, because fishing is all that the managers can control; it’s their Maslow’s Hammer. When it comes to the oceans it seems as if it’s about all that the industry connected mega-foundations that support the anti-fishing ENGOs with hundreds of millions of dollars a year in “donations” are interested in controlling. Read the article here

Recent Posts
- PWS, Cook Inlet sockeye catch exceeded harvest projections
  
  As the sockeye salmon harvest season comes to a close, only Bristol Bay, Prince William Sound and Cook Inlet surpassed their pre-season predictions, with harvests of Read More »
- Study Reviews Trawler Effects on Seabed
  
  An international group has taken a close look at how different types of bottom trawling affect the seabed. It finds that all trawling is not created Read More »
- Fraser River sockeye run looks promising
  
  “The two components of the early runs are looking pretty reasonable,” said Jennifer Nener, director of salmon for the Pacific region with Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Read More »
- The story of how a Black man pioneered the salmon canning industry in British Columbia in the 1870s
  
  Located on an island on the Fraser River in British Columbia, Canada, is the Deas Island Regional Park What many do not know is that the Read More »
- Early breakup on Yukon River could mean early king run
  
  If the king run does arrive early, biologists want to be ready for it. This year’s chinook run is projected to be one of the worst Read More »
- Meeting a need – College to offer boat/ship welding program
  
  Starting this Fall, students and adult learners can take courses in welding from Oregon Coast Community College, thanks to a partnership with the Port of Toledo, Read More »
- Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance Weekly Update, May 17, 2015
  
  The Rhode Island Fishermen’s Alliance is dedicated to its mission of continuing to help create sustainable fisheries without putting licensed fishermen out of business.” Read the Read More »
- Monterey Bay salmon fishermen report record prices, disappointing harvest in the early season.
  
  Monterey County Weekly – Boots planted on the floor of his boat in Monterey Harbor, Bryan Lucas hoists his only catch of the day: a sparkling Read More »
- It’s A No-Brainer: Emissions Free Nuclear Power Only Antidote To Net-Zero
  
  Attempting to satisfy a net-zero carbon dioxide emissions target using unreliable wind and solar is a guarantee of energy poverty. Every country that’s attempted to rely Read More »
- Athearn Marine Agency Boat of the Week: 104′ RSW Lobster/Crabber/Seiner, 850HP Cat, 2 Deere Auxiliaries
  
  To review specifications, information, and 51photos, >click here<, Vessel in good condition, and would make a great salmon tender seiner or west coast crabber. To see Read More »
- “No Industrial Scale Fish Factory in Frenchman Bay” – American Aquafarms reps, critics take sides
  
  Longtime South Gouldsboro lobsterman Frank Hammond has fished for decades in “The Hop,” an area northwest of Long Porcupine Island, where one of American Aquafarms’ sites Read More »
- Vintage Fishing Boat, F/V Roann, to Highlight First Cape May Port Commercial Fishing Festival
  
  Her name’s Roann and she’ll be showing off her stuff to curious landlubbers June 6 and 7 at the Lobster House Docks. Roann may be the Read More »
- Bailouts
  
  The Alaska Congressional delegation is singing praises for a new $100 million bailout of the state’s floundering commercial salmon processing business. In a joint statement from Read More »
- CDQs bring millions in fishing profits — and jobs — to poor western Alaska villages
  
  Congress tried to honor that connection when it created the Community Development Quota, or CDQ, program, in 1992. Before CDQs, commercial fishing was dominated by outside Read More »
- Reins Loosened Slightly On Chesapeake Bay Crab Harvest
  
  “We’re being cautious, but I think we’re being responsible,” said Ed Tankard, a board member with the Virginia Marine Resources Commission, which voted June 27 to Read More »
- New Jersey Fishermen Demand a Say in Decisions on Offshore Wind Farms
  
  Fishermen insisted Monday to a congressional subcommittee looking at offshore wind energy that they be consulted,,, Fishermen should have been brought into the planning process from Read More »
- Workers stage blockade at La Scie crab plant – Daley Brothers pull a fast one
  
  A shipment of crab remains stuck on Newfoundland’s Baie Verte Peninsula, as plant workers refuse to let the seafood leave for processing somewhere else….Calls to Daley Brothers Read More »
- Autonomous Ships – If Rolls-Royce has its way, commercial vessels will soon have no crew on board
  
  It’s midnight on the North Atlantic, where a massive container ship receives the latest weather report. There’s a nasty storm brewing ahead. Quietly, the ship changes Read More »
- Cameras on boats ‘an invasion of privacy’
  
  A group of fishermen could be heading to court to fight a plan to use cameras and GPS trackers to monitor commercial trawlers. Consultation by the Read More »
- Whale Protection Bill SB 1287 – North Coast Senator speaks on progress
  
  North Coast Senator Mike McGuire’s Whale Protection Bill has passed, and now involved agencies are working on implementation. Senate Bill 1287 aims to help stop whale Read More »
- Building, wharf collapse on Gloucester waterfront
  
  Cape Ann Ice owner Scott Memhard was one relieved man last night as he stood surrounded by fire trucks off Commercial Street and surveyed the wreckage Read More »
- Flooded Engine Room Forces Canadian Fishermen into Life Raft 150 miles off the Massachusetts Coast
  
  A Coast Guard helicopter rescue crew from Cape Cod, Massachusetts pulled three people from the water more than 150 miles off the coast after their vessel Read More »
- CARES Act Applications Now Available for Maryland Fishing Industry – Deadline to Apply is Feb. 28, 2021
  
  The Maryland Department of Natural Resources announces that applications remain available through February 28, 2021 for economic relief funds for the commercial seafood industry through the Read More »
- NYDEC halts commercial fluke fishery for about two weeks, sets harvest limit
  
  New York State will close its commercial fishing grounds, a staple of the Long Island fishing fleet, for about two weeks effective Sunday. The closure, which Read More »
- Stokesbury’s image-based, drop camera survey has been pivotal in the revival of the scallop industry
  
  Stock assessment is one of the many key areas of research being conducted by several professors at UMass Dartmouth’s School for Marine Science & Technology (SMAST). Read More »