Day At The Beach Turns Nightmare As Mother Fined Rs 7 Lakhs After Her Children Picked Up 72 Clams
It was supposed to be an unforgettable beach vacation for a family from California when they were at Pismo Beach. But it turned out to be 'unforgettable' for a different reason. Charlotte Russ was slapped with an eye-popping fine of $88,000 (around Rs 7 lakhs) for a 'mistake' her children committed.
Clam Capital of the World
Russ and her five children were in Pismo Beach, California, known as the Clam Capital of the World, late last year when it happened. Like almost all beachgoers, Russ's children started looking for seashells on the beach and began collecting them. But there was a problem: what the children picked up from the beach sand, thinking they were seashells, were?in fact?clams.
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"My kids thought they were collecting seashells, but they were?actually?collecting clams, 72 to be exact," Russ told a local news outlet.
Can't collect clams?without licence
So what is the problem here??
Pacific Razor Clams and Pismo Beach Clams are strictly regulated under California state laws. Only those with a?licence?can collect them, and there are strict laws on where and when clams can be fished, how they must be placed back, and more, which the children and their mother were unaware of.
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Fined Rs 7 lakhs
The family's beach vacation took an unexpected turn when the mother was confronted by the Department of Fish and Wildlife as they were about to leave and issued her a ticket.?
But she was left shocked when she received a notice saying that she would need to pay just over $88,000.
"It made me?really?sad and depressed, and it kind of ruined our trip," Russ said.
Unforgettable trip
But, thankfully for her, a county judge reduced the fine to $500 (around Rs 41,000). As a reminder of the 'unforgettable' trip, Russ got herself a tattoo of a shellfish.?
"It was?definitely?one expensive trip to Pismo, unforgettable," Russ said, adding that now her children know they should pick up nothing from the beach.
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