Fishguts,

I'll give you short answers to your questions.

First, PETA cannot sue fishermen who are fishing during a season. As noted above, if they thought that a fishing season was going to violate the ESA, then they need to sue the NMFS for issuing an incidental take permit in violation of the ESA, or sue WDFW if they didn't get a permit that was required by the ESA.

Second, there are no definitive court cases that say whether or not the tribes are subject to the ESA. The tribes and state have both been loathe to bring the case because the tribes don't want it to apply to them, and the state doesn't want the court to say it doesn't apply. Instead, they just keep making agreements for seasons and keep on keepin' on.

Fish on...

Todd.