Tag Archives: Portland
Fishermen Fight Bureaucrats to Defend Their Way of Life
Fishermen are going to court in Portland, Maine, on Tuesday to protect their businesses and communities from an unconstitutional regulatory commission that is a menace to our iconic industry. Overregulation has taken the joy out of fishing, and the prosperity too. That inevitably follows when powerful bureaucrats aren’t accountable to anyone, as is the case with the unconstitutional regional management councils that set policy for our fisheries. America’s fishing fleet is steadily retracting. Fishing is a generational trade passed within families. Many fishermen I know are vectoring their sons and daughters away from the family business. There are many reasons for that, but overregulation is one of them. By Jerry Leeman. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 13:21
Fishermen get probation, fines for scheme to avoid herring quotas
Eight men from Maine and one from New Hampshire – comprised of the owner, captains, and crew members of a commercial fishing vessel, the Western Sea, and owners of local Maine fisheries – have been sentenced for knowingly subverting commercial fishing reporting requirements. The final six sentences in the complex case were handed down this week by U.S. District Judge Jon Levy in U.S. District Court in Portland, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Thursday July 11. The Western Sea is a fishing vessel that operated out of Rockland and fished for Atlantic herring. Atlantic herring is the primary bait fish for Maine’s lobster industry. more, >>CLICK TO READ<< 19:49
Five Maine fishermen plead guilty in herring scheme
The trial of five fishermen accused of a multi-year scheme to sell unreported Atlantic herring and falsify fishing records ended Monday when the defendants all pleaded guilty to lesser offenses. No sentencing date has been scheduled. The plea agreements call for a maximum sentence of a year in prison, a fine of up to $100,000, and up to one year of supervised release. The defendants, however, may end up with no jail time. Fifty-nine counts against the five defendants were dismissed in exchange to the pleas on lesser charges. The trial began last week in U.S. District Court in Portland and was expected to last nine days. The five defendants who pleaded were Glenn Robbins, 76, of Eliot; Ethan Chase, 46, of Portsmouth, N.H.; Neil Herrick, 48, of Rockland; Stephen Little, 58, of Warren; Jason Parent, 51, of Owls Head; and Western Sea, Inc. more, >>click to reads<< 16:20
Federal trial starts for five fishermen accused of multi-year scheme
The jury trial of five people charged with a multi-year scheme to sell unreported Atlantic herring and falsify fishing records began Thursday, March 7. The trial is expected to last nine days in the U.S. District Court in Portland. The jury was selected this week. Opening statements were scheduled to start March 7. The five defendants — who have pleaded not guilty — are Glenn Robbins, 76, of Eliot; Ethan Chase, 46, of Portsmouth, N.H.; Neil Herrick, 48, of Rockland; Stephen Little, 58, of Warren; Jason Parent, 51, of Owls Head; and Western Sea, Inc. Other defendants have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. more, >>click to read<< 11:31
Well known and successful Gloucester Fisherman Edmund W. Lakeman has passed away
Edmund W. Lakeman passed away unexpectedly and peacefully in Port Charlotte, FL on Sunday, January 14, 2024. Ned was a well-known and successful commercial fisherman out of Gloucerter, MA and Portland, ME. fishing with his four sons and many others over decades. he was predeceased by his wife, Jacqueline, in April. He was also predeceased by his two sons Larry and Fred. Edmund is survived Hy his sons John Lakeman of Florida and Ned Lakeman of Maine. Edmund has 7 grandchildren and many great-grandchildren, A private service will be announced this summer. >>Link<< 09:40
Flooding smashes Maine’s coast, destroying historic buildings and forcing rescues
A massive Saturday storm brought record flooding and high winds to coastal Maine, destroying iconic fishing shacks along a South Portland beach and forcing rescues farther down the coast. Damage was heavy in the Portland area around the highest tide of the season around noon. Some of the biggest casualties were three fishing shacks that sat on Fisherman’s Point and had interior timbers that are more than 200 years old. They were washed away as the high tide came in around noon Saturday. Video, photos, >>click to read<< 07:22
Fishermen look to give back with warm chowder for Christmas
To give back to those without the luxury of a warm holiday season, a handful of fishermen headed to Portland to serve up some fresh-caught haddock chowder for the holiday weekend. Hosted by the New England Fishermen Stewardship Association, teamwork from about a dozen volunteers made it possible to create a mini-food drive for people living underneath the Casco Bay Bridge. “The association was created to bring all fishermen together all across New England and all different fisheries, and so we just kinda came up with the idea,” COO Dustin Delano said. Video, more, >>click to read<< 06:45
Trial date set for fishermen charged with fraud, violation of herring laws
The trial for the fishermen and seafood dealers who were indicted in 2022 with conspiracy, mail fraud, and obstruction of justice in connection with a multi-year scheme to sell unreported Atlantic herring and falsify fishing records will begin Jan. 3 and is expected to last eight days. The defendants who were indicted in January 2022 in U.S. District Court were Glenn Robbins, 76, of Eliot; Ethan Chase, 46, of Portsmouth, N.H.; Neil Herrick, 48, of Rockland; Stephen Little, 58, of Warren; Jason Parent, 51, of Owls Head; Dustin Reed, 41, of Waldoboro; Glenn Lawrence, 70, of Owls Head; Samuel Olson, 73, of Cushing; the Western Sea, Inc. of Rockland; New Moon Fisheries, of Waldoboro; and Sam’s Seafood of Cushing, according to the court document. more. >>click to read<< 07:47
Lobsterman Jumps Off Boat to Rescue Driver from Submerged Car
A lobsterman saved a person who was in a sinking vehicle in the ocean off East End beach in Portland, Maine, according to the Portland Police Department. As the orange Ford Mustang, which police said had been reported stolen in South Portland earlier Thursday, began to sink, fire and police department crews approached the car, according to the Portland Police press release. While the crews were able to break into the car while it was underwater, they could not get the 33-year-old out of the vehicle immediately. That’s when the lobsterman, Manny Kourinos, put on his diving gear and jumped into the water to help the vehicle’s occupant. “I went down and grabbed the guy and pulled him through the water,” >>click to read<< 14:37
Fishermen indicted in federal court for alleged fraud, violation of herring laws face September trial
A hearing is scheduled for Aug. 23 in U.S. District Court regarding trial scheduling and a motion to continue for the fishermen and seafood dealers who were indicted in 2022 with conspiracy, mail fraud, and obstruction of justice in connection with a multi-year scheme to sell unreported Atlantic herring and falsify fishing records. Jury selection is scheduled to begin on Sept. 5. The trial is anticipated for September and expected to last two weeks. According to the indictment, between June 2016 and September 2019, the owner, captains, and crew aboard the fishing vessel Western Sea sold more than 2.6 million pounds of Atlantic herring that was not reported to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The indictment alleges that members of the crew were paid directly by fish dealers and lobster vessel operators for the unreported herring. >click to read< 12:56
Trial for fishermen netted in federal probe set for September
The trial of six fishermen, two seafood dealers, along with corporations they own, who are charged in connection with a multi-year scheme to sell unreported Atlantic herring and falsify fishing records, has been scheduled for September. The postponement from August was made by the court as it considers a motion to reconsider an earlier judge’s ruling to deny suppressing statements made by a defendant to Marine Patrol officers. Glenn Robbins, 76, of Eliot; Ethan Chase, 46, of Portsmouth, N.H.; Neil Herrick, 48, of Rockland; Andrew Banow, 37, of Rockport; Stephen Little, 58, of Warren; Jason Parent, 51, of Owls Head; and Western Sea, Inc., were named in a 35-count indictment issued in January 2022. A superseding indictment was issued by a federal grand jury in October 2022 which included those defendants as well as Duston Reed, 41, of Waldoboro; New Moon Fisheries of Waldoboro; Glenn Lawrence, 70, of Owls Head; Samuel Olson, 73, of Cushing; and Sam’s Seafood of Cushing. >click to read< 15:29
21:32
Portland lobstermen catch rare blue lobster
A father and son fishing in Casco Bay Thursday morning caught a rare, blue lobster that will be preserved in a tank at one of the Portland waterfront’s best-known restaurants. The lobster, which is bright blue, was caught in the ocean waters beyond Peaks Island, said Luke Rand, who serves as sternman on his father’s boat, the Audrey B. Rand. Rand, 36, has been fishing since he was 16. “We’ve never pulled one this color or even seen one to throw back,” said Rand, who lives in Falmouth. His dad, Mark Rand, has been fishing for more than 40 years. Video, photo, >click to read< 14:44
Australia: Commercial fishers eyeing compensation as six offshore wind farm zones get green light
Trawl fishers have ramped up calls for compensation following the federal government’s announcement that it will establish six offshore wind energy zones. Waters off Gippsland, Portland, the Hunter Valley, Illawarra, northern Tasmania, Perth and Bunbury have been earmarked for development. But fishers are concerned they will be excluded from the sections of the ocean where the turbines are built. The most progressed wind farm proposal is the Star of the South project in Gippsland. “The problem we have is that the federal government has already given out rights … to go commercial fishing. >click to read< 07:59
Australian offshore wind farms get green light in landmark announcement – >click to read<
Maine lobstermen appeal to the public to fund legal fight against federal regulations
Without the financial means to fight both the government and environmental activists, lobstermen said their very existence is at stake. Lobstermen speaking at the press conference (today) said they feared the offshore regulations currently proposed would creep inshore, where most of them fish, eventually choking off their livelihoods. They also stressed how much money their industry brings into the state and how it supports communities beyond fishermen. According to the Maine Department of Marine Resources, Maine’s 2020 lobster catch was worth $406 million. That was down from $491 million in 2019. “That’s why we need everyone to step up and help us save the fishery,” photos, >click to read< 17:59
Portland: Union Wharf being sold, preserved for maritime use
Union Wharf, keystone of the working waterfront in Maine’s largest city for 228 years, is being purchased by the Gulf of Maine Research Institute,, The wharf has been in private hands since it was constructed in the aftermath of Portland’s destruction in the American Revolution. Members of the Poole family have owned it outright since the 1950s, Working waterfront advocates have feared the property might wind up in less sympathetic hands,,, Instead the Pooles, led by brothers Charlie and Malcolm, are selling to their immediate neighbor, GMRI, a marine research institution >click to read< 16:29
Letter: Fishermen need federal help
It is time to wake up. I read in Fishery Nation about protesters and fishermen opposed to a hotel on the waterfront in Portland, Maine. It seems their city fathers are having a difficult time turning those developers down due to less commercial fishing in their town. I can understand it is hard for them to turn down hotels and other businesses. We in Gloucester face the same. Our fisherman can be displaced and new developments can perhaps provide more tax dollars to the city, but at our fisherman’s expense. >click to read<09:23
Save the Working Waterfront: Fishermen resist as proposals for Portland waterfront projects mount
A spurt of hotel, office and shopping developments planned for Portland’s waterfront is rekindling concerns that space for fishermen and other traditional marine businesses is disappearing as Commercial Street becomes a shopping and dining mecca. Commercial fishermen who have unloaded lobster and groundfish on Portland’s wharves for decades see the changes as the next step in a long process to change the face of the waterfront, to their disadvantage. “They just don’t get it,” said Willis Spear, who has berthed his lobster boat on Custom House Wharf for 40 years. “We said in the beginning that this would happen, we’d just get squeezed out. It is going way faster than anyone knows.” click here to read the story 10:56
On the Job: Coastal Bait Co. in Portland
The company moves approximately 400 barrels of bait a day, six days a week, for lobstermen along the Maine coast. Coastal Bait Co. employee Ralph Kent has worked for the company, on Custom House Wharf in Portland, for eight years. “I never work nine to five,,, Photo series here 08:52
