Great Lakes Bass Fishing Forum

I still can't believe this happens as much as it does..

BAN THEM FOR LIFE FROM EVERYTHING SPORTS RELATED PERIOD!  I think its time we make a huge example out of these two creaps.. as if cheating isn't enough, they did it at a charity event that really gets under my skin!

Charity cheating case 5/4/2006
The Paducah (Ky.) Sun reported that two Kentucky anglers have been charged with misdemeanor attempted theft by deception in the wake of the recent Relay For Life fundraising bass tournament at Kentucky and Barkley lakes.

Island resident Dwayne Nesmith, 43, and 32-year-old Brian Thomas of Dawson Springs allegedly tied a basket containing four keeper fish to a dock in the extreme northern end of Kentucky Lake, then later weighed in three of those fish.

Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDWFR) officers reportedly received a tip about the location of the basket. Officers marked the fish for later identification and staked out the basket on the day of the tournament.

Nesmith and Thomas finished just out of the money and were cited as they attempted to leave the weigh-in. Their boat and fishing gear were confiscated and they're scheduled to appear in Trigg County District Court on May 16.

"They had five bass, three of them being fish that we had marked in the basket," KDWFR Sgt. Bill Snow told the Sun. "They had filled out their limit and culled one of the marked fish with a bigger bass, but there were still three with marked dorsal fins from the basket."

The duo received a boat and cash for winning the Superbass Tournament Trail Classic and were 5th out of 302 teams in the Jet-A-Marina Classic. That finish was worth $1,200.

Both of those events also took place at Kentucky-Barkley this spring.

"It gets me thinking," Jet-A-Marina owner Kerry Clark told the Sun. "But legally, I see no way of going back to be able to prove cheating in past tournaments."

This is the second case of alleged cheating in a bass tournament that involved criminal charges in the past 6 months. Missouri's Paul Tormanen pleaded guilty to fishing contest fraud in Louisiana in a case that stemmed from November's Red River Bassmaster Central Open.

Anger is the first thing that comes to mind.  A rope and a tall oak tree would be the next!  Sadness is what I feel most, for this affects all bassers.  It unfairly casts a bad light on team tournament's.  But lets not get paranoid.  Don't look at every team as a potential cheater.
I love team tournaments and I feel confident that 99.9% have only the hightest character.