Angler Caught With 2,500 Panfish, Fined $24K

A Wisconsin man is facing more than $24,000 in fines as a result of charges stemming from being cited for illegal possession of more than 2,500 panfish.

The LaCrosse Tribune reports Stanley Paalksnis, 74, of Onalaska, Wis., pleaded no contest in a LaCrosse County court to four citations that carry fines totaling $24,683.

The charges come from a November 2015 case in which Wisconsin DNR wardens found 2,066 bluegills, 418 yellow perch and 88 crappies in his boat and home. The possession limit is 50 for each species.

According to court records, wardens saw Paalksnis keep 47 bluegills on Nov. 4, 2015 on Lake Onalaska. The daily bag limit is 25. They then found the illegal fish in the man's boat and home.

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The newspaper said prosecutors asked a judge to impose a $10,000 fine, revoke Paalksnis' fishing privileges for 12 years and confiscate his 15-foot fishing boat.

Sentencing is expected at a later date.

Paalksnis has been ticketed seven previous times (from 1989 to 2011) and has had his fishing privileges revoked twice, according to the newspaper's report.

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