Elser v. Gill Net Number One

On this appeal by the State from adverse judgments in these consolidated actions to forfeit defendant gill nets, 1 the only question is whether the trial court properly concluded that interveners and respondents Grover Reed and Dewey George (hereafter interveners) are exempt from the provisions of the Fish and Game Code pursuant to section 12300 of that code. 2

The basic facts are not disputed. On April 5 and 19, 1964, respectively, a department game warden seized defendant gill nets, as the meshes of each exceeded the mesh size permitted by sections 8664 and 8686 of the code. 3 The first net,…