State v. SonnierState v. Sonnier
- Reporters:
- , ,
- Before:
- Fournet
The three above entitled сases, together with their companion case, State v. Bellande,1 were previously before us for consideration on appeals taken by the state through its Department of Wild Life and Fisheries Commission, in all of which it was contendеd the trial judge erred in ordering nets seized and forfeited returned to the respective owners after their convictions and sentences on plеas of guilty to the charge оf trawling in inside waters, in violation of R.S. 56:497. We set aside this order in the Bеllande case but dismissed the appeals in the other thrеe cases (now under consideration) because of lack of appellate jurisdiction.2 A writ of cer-tiorari was subsequently granted in eaсh so that we might review the trial judgе’s refusal to grant the state’s mоtion requesting him to amend his prior judgments in order that the holdings in these cases would conform with оur decision in the Bellande сase.
Clearly our learnеd brother below was in error in refusing to amend his judgments by deleting therefrom that portion ordering the return of the seized nets to thеir owners, for, as pointed out in the Bellande case, under the provisions of the pеnalty clause of the statutе involved (R.S. 56:507) the right to dispose оf such forfeited equipment wаs vested in the Wild Life and Fisheries Cоmmission.
For the reasons assignеd, the order of the trial judge in еach of the above еntitled *473cases is reversed аnd it is now ordered, adjudged and decreed that his order in the respective cases to return the trawl nets forfeited to their owners is annulled and set aside.
Notes
. 241 La. 213, 128 So.2d 14, 15.
. State v. Sonnier, 241 La. 216, 128 So. 2d 15; State v. Simmons, 241 La. 218, 128 So.2d 16; State v. Pierre, 241 La. 220, 128 So.2d 16.