Ticket for fish caught out of season?

I think that if it's his first offense with the local fish and game it will probably just be a small fine. I am from the other coast so I'm certainly not claiming to know your local laws, but these agencies are usually not looking to fry anybody unless they are trying to make an example of you for poaching, and they would only do that, at least on the east coast, if they start to see some type of pattern of you doing this consistently while knowing you shouldn't be. A lot of people catch fish out of season by mistake, because they just didn't know, although ignorance as an excuse will only piss them off more as he should of obtained the local abstracts before he set out to fish. I think that they just want him to realize that the state puts a lot of money into the fish and game agencies and these rules are to be taken seriously, but probably what he's going through now with the meltdown and all anticipating his court date will probably be the worst of it, outside of a fine, that is. He would definitely need a lawyer upon a second offense, though, so check the local laws.