South Carolina Flounder Case Shows Why Limits Have to Be Enforced

Four South Carolina anglers are facing wildlife charges after officers say they were caught well over the flounder limit in Georgetown County. This is the kind of case that reminds everyone why bag and size limits are not suggestions.

SCDNR officers checked a vessel on Aug. 7 after observing four fishermen gigging flounder. Officers said the group was 15 flounder over the limit, with six of those fish under the legal size. They also had an undersized sheepshead, and the vessel registration was expired.

Nickey Ray Gant, Trevor Austin Cox, Adam Zachary Tucker and Jordan Richardson were booked into the Georgetown County Detention Center. The reported charges included exceeding catch and size limits for gamefish. Each charge carries a $1,090 fine. Gant was charged with six counts, Richardson and Cox with five each, and Tucker with four.

The illegal fish were confiscated and donated to the Georgetown City Fire Department. That part is better than wasting them, but it does not erase the damage done when people decide the rules are for somebody else.

Legal harvest depends on restraint. If you want flounder seasons, healthy stocks and public trust in fishermen, then limits have to mean something and enforcement has to have teeth. Take what is legal, leave the rest and do not make honest anglers pay for your greed.