If you like fish and wildlife content, be sure to subscribe so you don't miss out on future videos. Officers with Florida Fish and Wildlife were on patrol near the St. Lucy Inlet when they made contact with a vessel to conduct a resource inspection. >> How are you, sir? >> Fine, thank you. >> Hey, we're I'm officer Fish and Wildlife. We're just doing a quick safety inspection and fishing check. Any luck? >> No. >> Nothing out there? >> Yes, >> just some blue runners. Okay. All right. So, where's your blue runner at? All right. All right. So, you got a mullet. >> Okay. Those are good. Good. All right. So, let me just take a little peek. So, I'm going to have you real quick. Yeah. >> All right. >> All right. Now, I'll just have you just step up in the front real quick, sir. All right. So, just blue runners. It's something mutton. >> Okay. So, we got a few muttons in here. Do we know how big the mutton snappers need to be? >> No, I don't. >> Okay. So, mutton snappers need to be 18 in >> already. >> Yes, sir. >> All right. Hey, do you have your driver's license with you, sir? >> Uh, I put in I put on uh in the car because I just concern it's wet. It's wet. >> Okay. >> But I I got on the phone. >> You have it on the phone? >> Yeah. >> Okay. I'm going to need to see that real quick. So, is there any other fish anywhere on the boat? Okay. I'm just going to take a peek in this cooler real quick. Okay. because I didn't I I didn't have the the the kind of fish you know how big that >> so we have you have to have a measuring device with you and also when I when we asked you if you caught anything. The only thing that you said is, "Hey, I caught blue runners." Okay. So, you only have maybe three blue runners in there. The rest of them are spots. Um >> 83 46. >> All right, sir. So, I'd say this is probably your biggest one right here. Okay. >> And you pinch their tail. >> Yeah. >> It's going to be 14 and a half. Okay. So, we got a 14 and a halfer. We got a 13 >> 13 and a half. >> 12 and a half. Yes. >> 10 and a half. >> 14. All right. So, they need to be 18 in. What boat ramp did you come in at? >> Right on for Port St. Lucy. Uh at Jensen Beach. >> Jensen Beach boat ramp. >> Yeah. >> Okay. >> Sorry, I didn't know that. So, >> so how it works is um you need to when you're out here fishing, you need to know what the rules are. The thing that concerns me is that when I came up to snapper, >> those are mutton snapper. You said it. You said I got mutton snapper in there. So, mutton snapper 18 in mangro snapper 10 in lane snapper 8 in. So, we have to know what are what what the fish we have. But the thing that concerns me is when I first came up to you and I asked you what you had, the only thing that you said is you said alls I have is blue runners. So, right here you have three different fish that aren't blue runners. You have a few blue runners in here, but most of these fish that you have in here are called spots. All right. Yep. That's a blue runner. >> That's a blue runner. You probably have five blue runners in here. >> This is a spot. >> Yeah. >> This is a spot. >> That's That >> these are grunts. >> Okay. So, these are spots. They call them spots because of that black spot right there. Okay. >> That illegal. >> Yo, you can have these. Yep. You can have these. I just need to make sure that you don't have any other muttons underneath here. >> Yep. Spots. spots. Blue runners and you got one spot down there. Okay. Now, I know I already asked I already looked in there. Is there any other fish anywhere on the boat? No. Okay. Let me just take a peek real quick. >> And then do you have all >> No, nothing in there. >> Nothing. >> Do you have all of your safety gear, sir? >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Okay. So, just pull out that safety gear real quick and let me just see it. >> Okay. So, there's your life jacket. I just need to see a throwable. extra flare. >> Okay. Well, you're you're not outside of the the the open. So, in here, you don't need to have your flares. So, alls I need to do is see a life jacket for you, a throwable, a fire extinguisher, and a sound producing device. >> Oh, no. Sorry. >> Okay. Fire extinguisher's on this side. >> All right. I see it. All right. So, your fire extinguisher is good. All I need to see is sound producing I mean uh a sound producing device. So, it could be a bell, it could be a whistle, it could be a horn, could be anything along those lines. right here. >> All right, let me hear it. >> All right, so your horn's not working. >> All right, so that's just your Okay, there's your horn right there. Perfect. All right, so the only thing I need to see is your throwable. So it's going to be the one that has it's looks like a cushion and you have arm sleeves and you can throw it to people. >> Oh, I didn't know. >> You don't have one of those? >> All right, >> I have one, but I I think that a float. >> John, you might whack that. So, just watch out. I'm going to get on here real quick and move us is um try to find that throwable for me. I'm going to I'll explain it to you and then um he'll he'll go and tell you the rest of it. So, how it's going to work is you're allowed to have five snapper. Okay? You have five snapper right here and all five of those are under size. Okay? So, how it's going to work is uh he is going to go in here. We're getting into the CAD. They're just fixing something real quick. And then and what we're going to do is it it's a it's a court appear because because these fish are very soughta and they're great. So you can only have five mutton snappers and they have to be 18 in or above. The biggest one that you have in here is 14 12. So we have to take these fish and we have to issue you a notice to appear. So, how it works in Martin County or how it works, we could either do a notice to appear or you could go to jail for the day. So, we do notice to appear so you don't go to jail for the day. All right? Because how it works is these fish are misdemeanors when they're undersized. So, when you have undersized fish, they are misdemeanors that are going to be on your record. Okay? So, what's going to happen is he's going to do paperwork. He's going to print it out. He's gonna have you sign something and it's going to have a date and a phone number. In a week, you call that phone number and it's going to tell you if that date and that time are still the time that you're going to show up for your court appearance. >> Where where they >> downtown Stewart, you know, I I didn't know that. >> I I know, sir. But the one thing that the one thing that gets me is anytime that we come up to people and we speak to people >> Yeah. When the when the person says when we ask them a question, we're like, "Hey, what'd you catch?" And they say, "Ah, nothing." Like you, "Hey, nothing. Just a few blue runners." And then when we go and look and we see that there's maybe four blue runners in there, a bunch of spots, and a bunch of other, that's kind of when we get a little suspect, and we start to wonder. >> Anyway, you can forget it because we did the first target. I'm 37. So, here it is right here. >> So, you're going to Oh my gosh. She did. >> I'm stay on boarding just now. I usually on the >> So, so sir, the reason why we can't it can't be like forgiving like that is because Oh my gosh, he's because these fish are sought after. You if you would have one, it's understandable, but you have five. So, that's what makes it a little harder for us to say, you know what, it's an honest mistake, but you have five. When you have five, it's not an honest mistake. Understand? >> Yeah. I have no record in my life. >> So, yep. Understandable. But, so what our job is is we are Florida Fish and Wildlife. Our job is to protect the natural resources. So, when we do safety inspections and vessel inspections and we find stuff like that, we have to do it, sir. >> You know, I could say if it was one fish, it's one thing, but there's five fish. Okay. All right, sir. So, he's going to have you sign something real quick. When you're signing this, it's not an admission of guilt. You can fight this if you want to fight this. It's acknowledging the fact that I gave you this and you are going to call this number and show up on that date to have your court appearance. >> Perfect. And then he the copy that he is giving you is going to say the exact same thing that's on that one. We're writing you for the undersized mutton snapper. Okay. Now, if you would have had an extra one, it would have been over the bag limit. But since you only have five, it's five snapper that are under size. So, what's going to happen now is he you are going to get one warning for not having the throwable and you are going to get that mic, which we call misdemeanors for undersized fish. Okay. >> So, I I got a big problem because I am concerned, you know. >> So, you'll you have to talk to the judge about that. It depends on what the fine is going to be. We It's our job to enforce the laws. We don't set what the violations are. So, we're out here protecting the natural resources that Florida has to offer. >> If it's a first time, probably the judge says >> if it's a first time, then it's probably going to be a class and a fine, but like I said, that's up to what the judge decides. >> Okay? So, make sure that you know what fish you have before you keep any of these fish. Okay? >> All right, sir. Any other questions for us? >> No. >> Is Is your boat on still? Your motor still on? All right, sir. So, what we're going to do is we're going to wait for these boats to pass us real quick. >> Okay. >> So, we don't whack into them. >> All right, sir. >> Your first fish case. >> Yeah. >> All right. >> In the end, Min was charged with being in possession of undersized mutton snapper. He pled no contest to the charge and was adjudicated guilty. He was ordered to pay $320 in cost and fines and $100 to the Fish and Wildlife Foundation. All of the fines were paid the same day as sentencing. If you like this video and want to see more like it, subscribe to Arrest Cam. As always, thanks for watching.