Fisheries Observer Out of Water

The courtroom has never really intimidated criminal defense attorney Daniel Larin. That’s largely thanks to the four months he spent in the Bering Sea working as an observer for the National Marine Fisheries Service. Facing even the most notorious judges pales in comparison to riding out monstrous swells with a survival suit in his lap and the knowledge that just six minutes in the icy sea would kill him.

“I lack fear in pretty much any situation now,” he says, “because I know that nothing bad can happen to me that could be any worse than going down in that boat in Alaska. If I could face that, I can face anything.”

In his childhood, Larin developed a fascination with the ocean and the work of Jacques Cousteau. “Initially, it was whales and dolphins that drew me into marine biology and, from there, I developed an interest in invertebrates and octopuses,” he says. “They’re my favorite animal.”

Larin majored in zoology at Michigan State and took as many classes related to oceanography as possible. He joined a summer program at the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology, which had a pet octopus in the classroom.

It was while working in air quality control as an environmental scientist after college that he heard about opportunities in Alaska as a fisheries observer. After a successful phone interview, he quit his job and went to Seattle for a month of training before spending the summer of 1990 on a 160-foot longline fishing vessel in the Bering Sea with a dozen crew members—all convicted felons.

“I arrived up in Dutch Harbor to join my boat and [the crew] did not want me there,” he recalls. “My job was to observe everything and, if they did anything illegal, I was supposed to report it. I was basically the police.”

A longline boat sends down a mile of line with thousands of baited hooks that “soak” for roughly a day before being pulled up. Larin would observe the catch—mainly cod and sablefish—and ensure crews weren’t keeping prohibited species, like expensive halibut.  

“They kept asking me, ‘Hey, if you just turn your back, we’ll sell it and cut you in.’ I said no, so I was a little hated for that.”

Despite such challenges, he had a good experience once he settled in. “I liked every guy who was on that boat. They weren’t bad people, they were just drug felons so they were generally good guys who were undereducated. They did an important job out there and really worked hard.”

The ample downtime, paired with Alaska’s long summer days, allowed him to spot an abundance of whales, seals and other wildlife. The captain, an arsonist who was given the option of joining the U.S. Marine Corps or going to jail, taught him to navigate and even drive the boat on occasion. 

There were misadventures, too—at one point they accidentally crossed into Russian waters and within minutes received a radio call from the Coast Guard. 

After four months he returned to Seattle and was given the option to come back the next year, which he declined. “It was something I would recommend people do, but at the same time, I would recommend people don’t do it. It was terrifying.”

Larin went on to study law, inspired by his father, prominent attorney Robert Larin, at Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kansas. After graduation, he interviewed for roles in environmental law. 

“I realized it was going to mean sitting in an office for the rest of my career,” he says. “My father’s job as a criminal defense attorney specializing in drunk driving looked pretty exciting—going to court every day—so I ended up joining his practice.”

He’s been an attorney for nearly 30 years now. The skills he honed as a scientist have contributed to this success, especially when it comes to understanding the science and physiology of things like breath and blood testing, medical reports and autopsies. 

The connections he made with the boat’s fishing crew have also made a difference. “As a criminal defense attorney, you really can’t look at your clients as criminals. These are people: They have feelings, they’ve got families and they’ve got the same fears we all do.”