Carmel boutique owner is fined $150,000 for illegally selling new fur products. – Monterey County Weekly

California was the first state to pass a law in 2019 banning the sale of new fur products, but the law didn’t go into effect until Jan 1, 2023, giving sellers four years to prepare for the ban.
One Carmel boutique owner kept on selling new furs anyway and is paying the price for violating the state’s Fish and Game code, according to Monterey County District Attorney Jeannine Pacioni, in an announcement on Wednesday, Sept. 17.
Tracy Odle, owner of the upscale Augustina’s Designer Boutique on Ocean Avenue and Augustina’s Leathers online, has been fined $150,000 in civil penalties in a case brought by the D.A.’s Environmental Protection Unit. 
Assembly Bill 44 includes specific exemptions for fur used for religious purposes and for traditional Native American tribal or cultural purposes, among others. It does not ban the sale of used products or items like cowhide or sheepskin.
“Even despite her actual knowledge of the ban, Odle continued to advertise and profit off of her sale of new fur products such as coats and hats made of fox, mink, sable and beaver fur,” a press release states. The products were offered both in store and online. 
The investigation began after a consumer complaint was filed with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
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Expensive mistake. Was she provided a warning notice to ‘cease and desist’, or did the DA’s office simply pounce without warning?
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