The California Fish and Game Commission has permanently revoked the commercial fishing licenses and permits of two fishermen following extensive and repeated violations in the state’s lobster and Dungeness crab fisheries.
At its meeting in June, the Commission acted on recommendations from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to revoke 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.
According to CDFW, Miller’s violations spanned over a decade and included abandoning 156 lobster traps in waters off Santa Barbara and the Northern Channel Islands. Additional infractions included leaving traps in the water after the season had closed, failing to retrieve baited traps, and submitting inaccurate catch records.
Ghera was cited for abandoning 94 crab traps after the 2023 season and 74 after the 2024 season. He also failed to service traps within the required 96-hour window, did not submit mandatory reports, and used untagged traps and buoys that were improperly marked.
Abandoned traps can pose significant threats to marine mammals and other wildlife, and may also lead to shortened fishing seasons, impacting law-abiding fishers who rely on these fisheries for their livelihoods, CDFW said in press release.
“The majority of people who fish commercially are law-abiding and care about our fisheries,” Nathaniel Arnold, Chief of the CDFW Law Enforcement Division, said in a statement. “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.”
This isn't an isolated case. In October 2023, the commission revoked the license of one fisherman and virtually suspended another for repeated violations such as trap abandonment and fishing in protected areas. One received a five-year permit suspension, and another had a lifetime revocation.
Miller has a long string of fishing violations. In 2024, he pled guilty to falsifying commercial fishing records, harvesting lobster out of season, and abandoning at least 156 commercial lobster traps around Santa Cruz Island and the Santa Barbara Harbor — his third commercial lobster poaching conviction since 2014.
