A California woman is shaking up the bass-fishing community by seeking its most venerable, sought-after record with a 22-pound, 8-ounce largemouth bass she said she caught — and released.

Leaha Trew, 45, of Santa Rosa, Calif., would break the 71-year-old world record for the biggest largemouth if the International Game Fish Assn. accepts her evidence for the lunker hooked Aug. 24.

IGFA records administrator Doug Blodgett said last week a four-person committee is checking her documentation in what is basically an honor system. He said committee members, including BASS founder Ray Scott, are also looking into issues raised by others before deciding whether to declare the fish the champion bass.

The record is a 22-pound, 4-ounce fish George Perry caught in 1932 in Montgomery Lake, Ga.

Trew wouldn’t comment pending a decision by the IGFA. Her son, Javad Trew, of Petaluma, Calif., was fishing with her when she caught the behemoth bass in 72-acre Spring Lake near Santa Rosa.

Javad Trew, 21, told The Charlotte Observer his mother was excited about her prize fish.

“She believes she caught the world-record fish,” he said. “She believes she beat out George Perry.”

Media articles over the years have speculated whoever catches the next record largemouth, America’s most popular game fish, potentially could earn hundreds of thousands of dollars in endorsements and speaking fees.

Blodgett said the fact that Trew released the fish didn’t disqualify her.

“That just raises more questions,” he said.

She submitted a photo, statements, measurements and weight taken on a certified scale, but other proof is lacking.

The Trews didn’t photograph the fish next to a tape measure or an object for size reference. As a result, Blodgett said, that forced IGFA biologists in Dania Beach, Fla., to examine the photo to see if the fish’s weight falls within the range of the 29-inch length, 25-inch girth measurements. He said it did.

“As far as what I have seen, there’s nothing for rejection,” Blodgett said. He said the decision would be posted on the IGFA’s Web site, igfa.org.

The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward, Wis., recently gave the fish recognition but not the record.

The Hall of Fame said it required a biologist to examine any world-record contender. The Hall of Fame listed the fish as “all tackle unofficial” as well as the line-class record for a largemouth caught on a 12-pound test line.