Update on Coastal Fisheries Trial: Week 5 Recap
February 16 – 20, 2026
Witness testimony concluded last week in the trial in CCA NC’s lawsuit to hold the State accountable for failing to protect and preserve North Carolina’s once-abundant coastal fisheries. This past week, the state concluded its defense with presentation of testimony from a number of witnesses:
- Dr. Joel Fodrie, Director of the UNC-Chapel Hill Institute of Marine Sciences and lead scientist on the UNC Collaboratory Legislative Study of Coastal and Marine Fisheries.
- Dr. Jospeh Hightower, emeritus retired professor, NC State University Department of Applied Ecology.
- Dr. Frederick Scharf, Department Chair, UNC Wilmington Department of Biology and Marine Biology.
- Jason Rock, Fisheries Management Section Chief, NC Division of Marine Fisheries.
- Christopher Batsavage, Special Assistant Director for Councils, NC Division of Marine Fisheries.
- Dr. Barbara Garrity-Blake, cultural anthropologist.
- Kathy Rawls, Director, NC Division of Marine Fisheries.
The court will be in recess on Monday and resume Tuesday with closing arguments.