Article in "Westmeath Examiner" dated 25th October 2003

It was a almost a case of gamekeeper turned poacher at Castlepollard District Court when the Shannon Regional Fisheries Board, which was prosecuting two Lithuanians for alleged illegal fishing, found itself under fire from Judge John F Neilan for its treatment of the fish in question.

When a very irate Judge Neilan heard from an official that around 70% of pike caught in SRFB nets die, he told the official "You (the SRFB) should be prosecuted for cruelty," before telling him to get out of his court and dismissing the case against the defendants.

The two Lithuanians, Stasys and Donatas Zilinskas, with the same address of 12 Straffan Way, in Maynooth, were accused of taking fish from SRFB nets on Lough Sheelin on April 13 last. The court heard that a third man, Romas Svipas, also accused of illegal fishing, had left the country. The two remaining men, who chose to defend themselves and spoke through an interpreter, had initially sought to plead "50/50" when asked how they were pleading to the offences. Judge Neilan pointed out that such a plea would be taken as one of "not guilty".

Solicitor for the SRFB, Mr George V Maloney, said that the defendants had been seen on Lough Sheelin, allegedly interfering with nets belonging to the board and removing fish from them. The fish, six pike, were later seized by board officials and showed marks from the nets. Neither of the defendants had a permit to fish on the lake. The defendants claimed that when they rented the boat, no-one had told them about the fishing regulations. While on the lake their propeller had become entangled in the nets. They admitted to taking the fish from the net, saying that two were alive and four were dead.

Judge Neilan rhetorically asked the defendants that if they were to go to Buckingham Palace, did they think they could automatically see the Queen or if they rent a car, could they drive on the wrong side of the road? The court heard that the defendants earned 500 euro a week each, although their employment was not specified.

Judge Neilan then expressed his concern about the dead fish in the nets, together with the fact that they were marked from the nets, and asked for a SRFB representative to explain how this might come about.

The SRFB's Matt Nolan explained that the board was trying to reduce the numbers of predatory pike in Lough Sheelin and were carrying out gill netting to this end. When the Judge referred to the number of dead fish, Mr Nolan estimated that some 30% of pike would be alive when taken from the nets. "The rest would be dead," he admitted.

A visibly enraged Judge Neilan asked if the witness thought that this was a correct way for the board to act before sharply declaring that he was dismissing the case against the defendants. "You (the SRFB) should be prosecuted for cruelty....You are creating a greater difficulty than these people - go on, get out!" he snapped.

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