B.C. jet skier fined $5K for approaching dolphins too closely
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is reminding people that there are rules around approaching marine mammals after a man was fined $5,000 for getting too close to a pod of dolphins.
Stephen Michael White was fined last month after being found guilty in November 2024 of violating a section of the Marine Mammal Regulations.
The incident took place in August 2022, in Broughton Strait near Port McNeill on Vancouver Island's northern coast, according to a media release from DFO.
White was recorded speeding toward a pod of Pacific white-sided dolphins on his Jet Ski, coming within a few feet of the creatures while filming on his phone — much closer than the 100-metre legal approach distance.
Witnesses immediately reported the incident. Evidence presented in court included images from White's own social media, as well as testimonies and images from witnesses.
The court found his actions to be negligent and reckless, leading to a six-month ban from operating any motorized vessel on water.
White is also prohibited from posting anything related to marine mammals to social media.
Don't disrupt marine animals: DFO
Catriona Day, fishery officer with DFO's whale protection unit, said the department is very concerned about boaters getting too close to marine mammals.
"There's many threats that these animals are facing," she said.
The department is not only concerned about physical disturbance, she said, but also "acoustic disturbance."
Toothed-whale species, including dolphins and killer whales, use sound to navigate their environment, called echolocation. Objects get in the way of their ability to communicate, find food, mate and socialize, Day said.
"They are disrupted when we come along and get too close, and it affects their normal life patterns and potentially puts the boater and the health of the marine mammal at risk," she said.
Day noted the case's guilty verdict and court-ordered fine are a reminder to follow the rules around keeping a distance from marine animals.
"This is not a joke. This isn't just to … have a great selfie and a great social media post. You can get in trouble for posting this."
"Enjoy the marine mammals; they are fantastic. They're absolutely a treat that we have in B.C. But enjoy them safely, and responsibly and legally," she added.
Under federal regulations, disturbances include approaching the marine mammal to feed, swim, or interact with it; moving it or causing it to move from the immediate area where it's found; separating it from members of its group or going between it and its calf; trapping it or its group between a vessel and the shore, or between a vessel and one or more other vessels; or approaching the animal to tag and mark it.
If boaters come across marine animals in the water, Day recommends slowing down and coming to a stop.
"Let the dolphins go away on their own.… It's absolutely illegal to go after dolphins on purpose," she said.
DFO is reminding British Columbians and anyone taking to open waters this summer of legal approach distances:
400 metres from all killer whales in southern B.C. coastal waters.
200 metres from all killer whales in all other Canadian Pacific waters, and when a whale, dolphin or porpoise is in a resting position or with a calf.
100 metres away from other whales, porpoises and dolphins.
The restrictions apply to all motorized and self-propelled watercrafts, swimmers, and scuba divers — part of a host of protective measures designed to protect marine mammals in B.C. waters.
The department is also asking the public for information on similar incidents contravening the Fisheries Act and regulations.
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Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
B.C. jet skier fined $5K for approaching dolphins too closely
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is reminding people that there are rules around approaching marine mammals after a man was fined $5,000 for getting too close to a pod of dolphins. Stephen Michael White was fined last month after being found guilty in November 2024 of violating a section of the Marine Mammal Regulations. The incident took place in August 2022, in Broughton Strait near Port McNeill on Vancouver Island's northern coast, according to a media release from DFO. White was recorded speeding toward a pod of Pacific white-sided dolphins on his Jet Ski, coming within a few feet of the creatures while filming on his phone — much closer than the 100-metre legal approach distance. Witnesses immediately reported the incident. Evidence presented in court included images from White's own social media, as well as testimonies and images from witnesses. The court found his actions to be negligent and reckless, leading to a six-month ban from operating any motorized vessel on water. White is also prohibited from posting anything related to marine mammals to social media. Don't disrupt marine animals: DFO Catriona Day, fishery officer with DFO's whale protection unit, said the department is very concerned about boaters getting too close to marine mammals. "There's many threats that these animals are facing," she said. The department is not only concerned about physical disturbance, she said, but also "acoustic disturbance." Toothed-whale species, including dolphins and killer whales, use sound to navigate their environment, called echolocation. Objects get in the way of their ability to communicate, find food, mate and socialize, Day said. "They are disrupted when we come along and get too close, and it affects their normal life patterns and potentially puts the boater and the health of the marine mammal at risk," she said. Day noted the case's guilty verdict and court-ordered fine are a reminder to follow the rules around keeping a distance from marine animals. "This is not a joke. This isn't just to … have a great selfie and a great social media post. You can get in trouble for posting this." "Enjoy the marine mammals; they are fantastic. They're absolutely a treat that we have in B.C. But enjoy them safely, and responsibly and legally," she added. Under federal regulations, disturbances include approaching the marine mammal to feed, swim, or interact with it; moving it or causing it to move from the immediate area where it's found; separating it from members of its group or going between it and its calf; trapping it or its group between a vessel and the shore, or between a vessel and one or more other vessels; or approaching the animal to tag and mark it. If boaters come across marine animals in the water, Day recommends slowing down and coming to a stop. "Let the dolphins go away on their own.… It's absolutely illegal to go after dolphins on purpose," she said. DFO is reminding British Columbians and anyone taking to open waters this summer of legal approach distances: 400 metres from all killer whales in southern B.C. coastal waters. 200 metres from all killer whales in all other Canadian Pacific waters, and when a whale, dolphin or porpoise is in a resting position or with a calf. 100 metres away from other whales, porpoises and dolphins. The restrictions apply to all motorized and self-propelled watercrafts, swimmers, and scuba divers — part of a host of protective measures designed to protect marine mammals in B.C. waters. The department is also asking the public for information on similar incidents contravening the Fisheries Act and regulations.
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Man seen ‘speeding toward' dolphins in B.C. waters fined $5,000
PORT HARDY - A man seen speeding on a Jet Ski towards a pod of Pacific white sided dolphins has been fined $5,000 and has been banned from posting anything related to marine mammals on social media. The man was found guilty last November in B.C. provincial court for violating marine mammal regulations after his trial heard he raced towards the pod and came within metres of them while filming on his cellphone. Witnesses said the man, who was in the waters near Port McNeill off northeastern Vancouver Island in August 2022, was much closer than the 100-metre legal distance required to stay away from dolphins. The Fisheries Department says in a statement released Thursday that the court ruled in a decision last month that the man's actions were 'negligent and reckless.' In addition to the fine and not posting about marine mammals on social media six months, he also faces a six-month prohibition from operating any motorized vessel on water. The department says the case is the first successful prosecution in Canada under Marine Mammal Regulations over distance provisions keeping vessels away from marine wildlife. The statement says dolphins and killer whales relying on echolocating to navigate their environment and close encounters with a vessels can disrupt their natural behaviour and interfere with signals they use to forage and socialize. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 19, 2025. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
USA Today
5 days ago
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'Forgiveness is between him and God:' Families reflect on decade since Charleston church massacre
'Forgiveness is between him and God:' Families reflect on decade since Charleston church massacre Show Caption Hide Caption Mother Emanuel AME churchgoer's legacy remembered seven years after tragic shooting Melvin Graham reflects on the life and legacy of his sister, Cynthia Graham Hurd, on the seventh anniversary of the Mother Emanuel AME mass shooting. Josh Morgan, USA TODAY Melvin Graham sat on the right of the arena with other families and listened as Barack Obama read the names of the nine churchgoers who were killed by a White supremacist at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston. He heard Obama call the name of his younger sister, Cynthia Graham Hurd. That was emotional enough. But at one point, the then-president broke out singing, 'Amazing Grace.'' Pastors, families, choir members joined in. 'That's one of those moments when you just wanted to break out and cry,'' recalled Graham, who had heard and sung the hymn plenty times over the years. 'Not in the context of having lost a loved one.'' The shooting 10 years ago at Emanuel AME Church, a historic Black church also known as 'Mother Emanuel," shocked the nation. Members− including Cynthia, a librarian − were at Bible study that June 17 evening when a White man they had welcomed later fatally shot nine of them. Five others survived. Some family members called Obama's presence days later at a funeral service and his rendition of the hymn a poignant moment as the country grappled with the horror of people gunned down in church. 'Even though this happened to Black people in a church… It felt like that sent a message of 'This could happen to anybody,' '' said Rev. Sharon Risher, whose mother, Ethel Lee Lance, was among the Emanuel Nine. "The sympathy from the country was overwhelming.' The nation was also gripped by some of the families publicly forgiving the shooter. But in the decade since the massacre, the families and others have been troubled by other deadly attacks against people because of their race, ethnicity or faith. And while they continue to demand justice for loved ones they lost, they also call for more efforts to prevent gun violence and tamp down on divisiveness plaguing the country. Families and community leaders hope commemorating the 10th anniversary will lead to more action. To mark the anniversary, Mother Emanuel will host a series of events, including a service June 17, during what it called 'Acts of Amazing Grace Month.'' The Graham family held a memorial service June 12 for Cynthia at the church, followed by a town hall, 'The Way Forward,' to discuss efforts to heal and take action a decade later. 'It is a moment for us to move from mourning to commemoration,'' Tonya Matthews, president and CEO of the International African American Museum in Charleston, told USA TODAY. 'But that move comes with the real responsibility and we've got to ask: So, what now? We have a moral obligation to do more than remember that moment – we must learn from it and use those lessons of history to inform our future.'' 'Move from mourning to commemoration' Across Charleston, there are monuments and tributes to honor the Emanuel Nine, including wooden benches with their names on them at a park near the church. More: 'We've slipped into forgetfulness': Charleston church shooting survivors demand gun control There are also scholarships, foundations and memorial gardens named in their honor. A library has been renamed the Cynthia Graham Hurd/St. Andrews Library. Construction is underway for the Emanuel Nine Memorial at the church. Church officials hope it will provide a space to help with healing. 'They're being memorialized and they're being remembered,'' said Graham, adding that racial attacks still happen. 'But we have to put a stop to this.'' 'Someone is going to act on the lie – again' Attacks against people because of their faith, race or ethnicity have continued since the shooting at Mother Emanuel. In 2022, 10 Black shoppers were killed by a white supremacist at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York. While some communities have condemned such attacks, overt racist rhetoric, including against immigrants, have ramped up, said Holly Fisher-Hickman, a history professor at Bowie State University in Maryland. Beyond Trump administration policies, such as travel bans including from African countries and challenges to birthright citizenship, people are more vocal about attacking other communities, she said. 'It's worse,'' Fisher-Hickman said. "Now we have someone who is blatantly saying it's okay to do what you feel.' Graham said national leaders should take the lead to condemn divisive rhetoric. He hopes the commemorations remind people of the harm that can come from it. 'The undercurrent for this to happen is right there,'' Graham said. 'Someone is going to believe the lie and someone is going to act on the lie – again.'' 'Forgiveness is between him and God' Risher was as surprised as others when some family members, including her own, told Dylann Roof they forgave him during a court hearing soon after the shooting. 'They just felt compelled and the words just came out of their mouths,'' recalled Risher, who believes God intervened. She called the public forgiveness significant because it 'set the tone of what was going to go on in Charleston.' The community rallied. It took Risher, who also lost a childhood friend and two cousins in the church shooting, more time to forgive. "I'm like, 'Oh, hell no,'' she said. It was two years later during a sermon at an interfaith service in Virginia, before Risher said she was moved to publicly forgive Roof. 'God allowed me to work it out in my own time,' said Risher, author of "For Such a Time as This: Hope and Forgiveness after the Charleston Massacre.'' Over the last decade, she has been an advocate for gun violence prevention and abolishing the death penalty. Last month, families of the Emanuel Nine joined a Zoom call with a victim's advocate to get an update on Roof's appeals. Roof, who was 21 at the time of the church shooting, was one of three prisoners on federal death row not given a commutation on his sentence by President Joe Biden last December. Historically, the African American community has given grace to others, said Fisher-Hickman. But some today don't feel that way. 'Now, people are saying, 'I'm not giving any more grace, grace has run out,'' she said. While some families of the Emanuel Nine have expressed forgiveness, not everyone has. 'Forgiveness is between him and God,'' Graham said. 'You can't execute my sister and say, 'Forgive me,'' he said. 'He planned the day, the time and the moment of my sister's death.'' Instead, he said, the family is pressing for lawmakers to adopt stricter gun laws and keep the memory of the Emanuel Nine alive. Graham's brother, Malcolm, recently released a book, 'The Way Forward: Keeping the Faith and Doing the Work Amid Hatred and Violence.'' 'We don't want to be the angry Black family,'' said Melvin Graham. "But we have to stand up for what's right.'' Remembering their names The Rev. Clementa Pickney, 41, senior pastor at Mother Emanuel and state senator The Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45, associate pastor, high school coach Cynthia Graham Hurd, 54, long-time librarian, branch manager Susie Jackson, 87, church trustee, member of the choir Ethel Lee Lance, 70, sexton, long-time member of Mother Emanuel DePayne Middleton-Doctor, 49, minister at the church, admissions coordinator, singer Tywanza Sanders, 26, recent college graduate, aspiring rapper Daniel Simmons, Sr., 74, retired pastor, Army veteran, Purple Heart recipient Myra Thompson, 59, teacher, counselor, church trustee
