A routine fishing check at a Rhode Island boat ramp turned into a much bigger problem for three men after a state environmental officer found dozens of fish that were either undersized, over the legal possession limit, or both, according to footage shared by the bodycam channel WildlifeWarden.
The channel’s narrator said Officer Lucas Walter of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management stopped the vessel near the Fort Adams boat ramp in Newport during the fall of 2025, after spotting three men returning from a day on the water.
What began as a calm inspection quickly revealed what Walter described as “quite a lot” of violations, including 48 tautog and 21 black sea bass, nearly all of which failed to meet Rhode Island’s minimum size requirements.
Officer Starts With A Simple Catch Check
Walter approached the men casually and asked how their fishing trip had gone before requesting to see what they had caught.
The men said they were visiting from Massachusetts and New Hampshire and told the officer it was their first time fishing in Rhode Island.
When Walter asked if they knew the state size limits for the fish they had kept, they admitted they did not.
“That’s fine,” Walter told them. “We’re gonna talk about it.”
He then asked them to unload all of the fish into a tote so he could measure the catch and explain the regulations.
The officer also checked for life jackets, visual distress signals, fishing licenses and the vessel registration, turning the encounter into a full inspection rather than simply counting fish.
Men Say They Did Not Know The Regulations
Walter tried to keep the interaction calm even after it became clear the catch was illegal.
“You guys are definitely in violation,” he told them, before explaining that both size and quantity limits had been exceeded.
He repeatedly told the fishermen not to panic and said the situation was not “the end of the world,” although he also made clear that citations and court appearances were likely.
The men told him they were unfamiliar with Rhode Island’s rules.
Walter said that was exactly why they needed to study the regulations before returning.
“I encourage you guys to come out and take advantage of the resource,” he said, adding that he wanted them to continue fishing in the future, only with a better understanding of what they could legally keep.
That tone is notable because Walter spent much of the stop educating the men rather than simply issuing tickets, even though the final numbers showed the violations were far beyond a single fish accidentally falling short.
Tautog Catch Was Far Beyond The Boat Limit
Walter first explained the rules for tautog.
At that point in the season, he told the fishermen each person could keep five tautog, but a boat-wide possession limit capped the total at 10 fish regardless of how many anglers were aboard.
The fish also had to measure at least 16 inches.
Walter further explained that only one tautog per person could exceed 21 inches, though he joked that oversized fish were clearly not the issue in this particular catch.
As he began measuring them, one fish after another came up short.
“Nope. Just short,” Walter said repeatedly.
WildlifeWarden later reported that the boat held 48 tautog in total.
Of those 48 fish, 47 were undersized.
That meant the fishermen were not simply over the daily boat limit by a small amount. They had nearly five times the legal number of tautog aboard, with virtually the entire catch below the minimum legal length.
Black Sea Bass Had The Same Problem
The black sea bass catch was not much better.
Walter explained that Rhode Island required black sea bass to measure at least 16.5 inches, with a daily limit of three fish per angler.
With three people on board, the men could legally possess nine black sea bass.
Instead, WildlifeWarden said officers counted 21.
Of those, 20 were undersized.
Walter pointed out that none of the men appeared to have a measuring device aboard, which made it difficult to understand how they could have known whether the fish were legal.
“You got to have one of these on the boat,” he said while showing them the measuring tool.
He urged them to buy even a cheap ruler or measuring board before fishing again and to keep updated copies of the state regulations.
That may have been the simplest mistake to avoid. When nearly every fish is subject to a minimum length, keeping dozens without measuring them leaves very little margin for claiming an accidental error.
Nobody Could Say Who Caught Which Fish
Another complication emerged when Walter asked the men who had caught each fish.
They said they had simply placed everything together in the same container and could not identify which angler was responsible for which catch.
That mattered because, according to Walter, the violations associated with fish aboard the vessel would generally fall on the boat owner when individual possession could not be separated.
Walter confirmed that the owner was a man identified as Edson.
The officer later explained the responsibility directly to him.
“The boat’s yours,” Walter said. “So anything on it is in your possession.”
Edson appeared surprised and told him he had not known that.
Walter explained that bringing other people aboard also meant accepting responsibility for what they placed on the vessel.
It is a harsh lesson, but an important one for boat owners: once multiple people mix an illegal catch together, sorting out personal responsibility afterward can become nearly impossible.
Boat Owner Receives The Main Charges
Walter ultimately told Edson that the serious fish-related charges would fall on him.
According to WildlifeWarden, he was charged with possession of undersized tautog, exceeding the daily possession limit for tautog, possession of undersized black sea bass and exceeding the daily possession limit for black sea bass.
Those were misdemeanor allegations requiring a court appearance rather than simple payable tickets.
Walter carefully explained that the summons was an agreement requiring Edson to appear in court instead of being taken into custody that day.
He told him he could contest the charges and request legal assistance if he chose.
The officer also issued citations connected to the boat itself, including expired visual distress signals and failure to present the vessel registration.
One of the other men initially faced a small citation for not having his fishing license available, although Walter later appeared to resolve that issue after checking the documentation.
Most Of The Fish Were Returned
Walter attempted to return fish to the water when they were still alive enough to be released.
He told the men he had to measure and document the entire catch first before deciding what could go back.
In the end, WildlifeWarden said the remaining fish were returned to the water and all three men were released from the scene.
Walter continued emphasizing education right up until they left.
He reminded them that the regulation books he had given them would expire at the end of the year and that they would need updated rules before fishing the following season.
He also told the boat owner to keep the registration aboard and replace the expired flares.
A Fishing Trip Turns Into A Court Case
The final count made the stop far more serious than it appeared when Walter first walked up to the boat.
Forty-eight tautog were aboard when the legal boat limit was 10, and 47 were undersized.
Twenty-one black sea bass were also found, with 20 failing to meet the minimum length.
Walter repeatedly told the fishermen that these kinds of cases happen often and that anglers need to know the rules before heading onto the water.
The situation is a clear example of how quickly ignorance of fishing regulations can turn into multiple criminal charges, especially when several anglers combine their catch and the boat owner cannot separate who kept what.
By the time the men left the ramp, what had started as a seemingly successful day of fishing had become a lesson in size limits, possession limits, boat-owner responsibility and why a cheap measuring device can save a lot of trouble.
A former park ranger and wildlife conservationist, Lisa’s passion for survival started with her deep connection to nature. Raised on a small farm in northern Wisconsin, she learned how to grow her own food, raise livestock, and live off the land. Lisa is our dedicated Second Amendment news writer and also focuses on homesteading, natural remedies, and survival strategies. Lisa aims to help others live more sustainably and prepare for the unexpected.
