June 25, 2018 — It probably passed unnoticed by most people but an obituary for Larry Yacubian appeared in this newspaper on June 13. He died in Punta Gorda, Florida on May 18. But most fishermen still shake their heads when his name comes up. I don’t know if he died a bitter man. I hope not, although he had every reason to feel that way after the treatment meted out to him by federal law enforcement. Larry was a New Bedford scalloper and boat owner. In December 1998 his boat, the Independence, was boarded by the Coast Guard while fishing offshore and he was accused of fishing in a closed area. What followed can only be described, euphemistically, as a miscarriage of justice. The fines imposed on him by an administrative law judge working on behalf of NOAA were so excessive that he was forced to sell his boat, his permits and the Westport farm that had been in his wife’s family for 350 years — all of this to satisfy the greed of some ‘bad actors’ who considered themselves above the rule of law because they were carrying a badge. This particularly malicious prosecution ran Yacubian, a founder of the Fisheries Survival Fund, out of the fishing business and brought financial ruin on his family.
After a torturous legal process some justice was served when Yacubian was refunded $400,000 and received an apology in 2012 from NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke although that sum did not even cover his legal fees. But the details of this shakedown make exceptionally grisly reading. Yacubian’s case was just one of dozens, but by far the most egregious, uncovered by a special master appointed by the Department of Commerce to investigate excessive fines imposed on our commercial fishermen for relatively minor infractions. Thirteen of these originated from the Northeast Regional Office in Gloucester. Upholding justice was the proffered reason for assessing these fines but plain old money was the motivator. These huge fines went to swell the Asset Forfeiture Fund which allowed NOAA agents in the Office of Law Enforcement to purchase luxury vehicles and boats. It is all well-documented if anyone cares to look it up.
Read the full opinion piece at the New Bedford Standard-Times