R. v. Echodh (D.), 2015 SKPC 76

• Judge: Robinson, P.C.J.
• Court: Provincial Court of Saskatchewan (Canada)
• Case Date: June 02, 2015
• Jurisdiction: Saskatchewan
• Citations: 2015 SKPC 76;(2015), 481 Sask.R. 261 (PC)

R. v. Echodh (D.) (2015), 481 Sask.R. 261 (PC)

MLB headnote and full text

Temp. Cite: [2015] Sask.R. TBEd. AU.018

Her Majesty the Queen v. Donald Echodh

(Information: 24004936; 2015 SKPC 76)

Indexed As: R. v. Echodh (D.)

Saskatchewan Provincial Court

Robinson, P.C.J.

June 2, 2015.

Summary:

The accused was charged that he: 1. unlawfully failed to complete a commercial fishing report, contrary to s. 84 of the Fisheries Regulations; and 2. unlawfully wasted fish, contrary to s. 92(c) of the Fisheries Regulations. The Crown did not lead evidence nor seek a conviction with respect to the charge of failing to complete a commercial fishing report.

The Saskatchewan Provincial Court found the accused guilty of the charge of wasting fish. The court imposed a fine of $500 plus an $80 surcharge. The court also revoked any licence the accused had to fish commercially on Wapata Lake and prohibited the accused from applying for or obtaining a licence to fish commercially on Wapata Lake for one year.

Fish and Game - Topic 2170.3

Fishing offences - Particular offences - Unlawfully wasting fish - The accused had a commercial fishing operation on Wapata Lake - The accused was charged that on December 10, 2013, he unlawfully wasted fish, contrary to s. 92(c) of the Fisheries Regulations - The accused denied that he intended to waste any of the whole pike and whitefish he left behind at Wapata Lake - He said that: 1. he was intending to take at least some of the pike and whitefish back to his home community for human consumption; 2. he was intending to leave some of the pike and whitefish out as bait for fur-bearing animals; and 3. the necessity of taking his helper (who was ill) back to Black Lake made it impossible to deal properly with the pike and whitefish he had caught - The Saskatchewan Provincial Court found the accused guilty - The court was unable to find that the accused actually intended to save the pike and whitefish for human consumption - The fact that the pike and whitefish were mixed in with walleye offal indicated that he had no such intention - The accused's argument that he was saving the pike and whitefish for bait raised the question of whether such a purpose could be justified in any circumstance - But the court did not need to decide that issue - The accused had more than enough walleye offal and suckers to meet any of his trapping bait needs - Adding pike and whitefish to his bait supply would be totally unnecessary and wasteful - The court also did not accept the accused's argument that the necessity of taking his helper back to Black Lake and then getting his walleye catch shipped to Prince Albert made it impossible to deal with the pike and whitefish properly - Putting the pike and whitefish into a fish tub and covering them with snow for protection would have taken only a few minutes - Accordingly, any defence of necessity failed - See paragraphs 22 to 27.

Fish and Game - Topic 2726

Offences - Sentence - Fines and penalties - Cancellation or suspension of licence - [See Fish and Game - Topic 2734 ].

Fish and Game - Topic 2734

Offences - Sentence - Fines and penalties - Wasting or abandoning edible flesh - The accused had a commercial fishing operation on Wapata Lake - Conservation Officers checked four sites at Wapata Lake where it appeared the accused had set nets under the ice and then removed them - At the first site, they found offal from about 100 walleye as well as five whole pike - At the second site, they found offal from 75 to 100 walleye as well as nine whole pike and four whole whitefish - At the third site, they found offal from 75 to 100 walleye as well as four whole pike and one whole whitefish - At the fourth site, they found offal from about 200 walleye as well as 21 whole pike, nine whole whitefish and 30 or 40 whole suckers - The accused was charged that he unlawfully wasted fish, contrary to s. 92(c) of the Fisheries Regulations - The Saskatchewan Provincial Court found the accused guilty - The court held that notwithstanding the need for deterrence, the $2,000 penalty sought by the Crown would be unduly harsh - As a commercial fisher in Saskatchewan's far north, the accused was engaged in an occupation that had very thin profit margins - The court also took into account that the accused's breach of the Regulations was of short duration - The wasting of fish occurred over a period of only two days - The court reduced the specified penalty sum amount and imposed a fine of $500 plus an $80 surcharge - The court also revoked any licence the accused had to fish commercially on Wapata Lake and prohibited the accused from applying for or obtaining a licence to fish commercially on Wapata Lake for one year - See paragraphs 28 to 37.

Trials - Topic 1114

Summary convictions - Defences - Impossibility of compliance - [See Fish and Game - Topic 2170.3 ].

Counsel:

Harold Johnson, for the Crown;

Donald Echodh, self-represented.

This matter was heard at Black Lake, Saskatchewan, before Robinson, P.C.J., of the Saskatchewan Provincial Court, who delivered the following judgment on June 2, 2015.