Helena, MT (Independent Record, Angela Brandt) – A Lincoln man, who state investigators say violated just about every wildlife law there is, will not be allowed to hunt for 20 years after being sentenced in District Court Wednesday on two felony charges.

Jeff Jorgensen, 36, will pay $17,000 in restitution to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks for unlawful possession of a game animal and unlawful sale of a game animal, both by common scheme.

Jorgensen also received five-year suspended sentences to the Department of Corrections for each charge to run concurrently.

After a game warden served a search warrant at Jorgensen’s home in May, they found evidence of about 11 years of violations. Journals, photographs, hunting licenses, antlers and hides told the tales of the animals – including 14 deer, five bears and a mountain lion – and how they were illegally hunted. Jorgensen was subsequently arrested in July.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Regional Investigator Chad Murphy testified that Jorgensen had hunted during closed season, including hunting at night and using bait.

"Most hunters don’t kill that many animals legally in a lifetime," he added. Jorgensen would falsify paperwork to put the animals' kill date earlier in the year, when that game's season was still open, in addition to making phony kill sites, Murphy said. He also would shoot animals in his yard, which is an archery-only area.

Court documents said Jorgensen used a motion camera to catch animals at his baited sites.

State Probation and Parole Officer Cathy Murphy, who conducted the pre-sentence investigation, recommended Jorgensen receive a five-year suspended sentence for each felony and 30 days in jail along with 20 years of suspended hunting, fishing and trapping rights.

Jorgensen, who had no previous felony charges, pleaded with Judge Thomas Honzel to allow him to hunt with his children.

"That's where our life is, is hunting and fishing," he said. "I chose the wrong way in the past. It's not going to happen again."

Honzel said Jorgensen can take his children fishing but cannot fish himself. He's not allowed to accompany anyone who is hunting, trapping or fishing himself.

"There's no reason for you not to know that most of what went on over this long period of time was illegal," Honzel said. "You went a long period of time when you decided these laws did not apply to you. They do apply to you."

Over the years, Jorgensen also allowed out-of-state acquaintances to illegally hunt on his land and claimed animals that other hunters killed, Murphy said.

"It's almost like he had to keep up with his hunting buddies for bragging rights," he added.

An investigation of additional suspects, both local and out-of-state, is ongoing, Murphy said.

Jorgensen also received six-month suspended jail sentences on misdemeanor charges of unlawful possession of a raptor for having a road-kill great horned owl mounted, illegal possession of a game animal by common scheme, hunting game animals by the aid of salt or bait, unsworn falsification to authorities and unlawful possession of a game animal.

Stanardsville, VA (The Associated Press) – A judge dismissed a voluntary manslaughter charge Tuesday against a game warden who shot and killed a Greene County teenager during a traffic stop in January.

Robert Orrin Ham III, the first Virginia game warden charged in a line-of-duty shooting, had pleaded not guilty in August. Game wardens are sworn law enforcement officers authorized to make arrests.

Authorities said Ham and a deputy sheriff, responding to a report that Allen Michael Cochran had abducted his girlfriend, stopped Cochran's car on U.S. 33 on Jan. 24. When Ham tried to remove the girl, the 16-year-old driver accelerated the car and struck Ham, who then fired into the vehicle, authorities said at the time.

Cochran's family later disputed the claim that he had abducted his 15-year-old girlfriend, saying the two were running away together and that the shooting was unwarranted. Ham was placed on administrative duties after he was indicted by a grand jury.

Commonwealth's Attorney Ron Morris and defense attorney Steven Benjamin both said in court Tuesday that if the case had gone to trial, it would not have resulted in a conviction.

"There was no crime. This was a necessary, justifiable shooting," Benjamin said after court.

Col. Mike Bise, chief of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries' Law Enforcement Division, said an internal investigation also found that Ham acted appropriately.

"It was an unfortunate and tragic event, but we have been confident the court would reach this decision," Bise said.

Columbus, OH (The Crescent News) – Six Defiance County residents were charged with 52 wildlife violations following an investigation conducted by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources' Division of Wildlife.

The six suspects are accused of wildlife violations concerning white-tailed deer, fox, black bear, wild turkey and Canada geese, according to the DOW.

The suspects are Lynn Miller, 31, William Shook, 29, John Coressel, 25, and Israel Miller, 30, all of Defiance; and Nathan Schindler, 30, and Chris Schindler, 28, of Bryan.

They are charged with a variety of third- and fourth-degree misdemeanors. Their cases will be heard in Defiance Municipal Court.

Wildlife investigator Mark Weihrauch and other division officers served a search warrant at the home of Israel Miller on Oct. 28.

While the search warrant was being executed other officers conducted interviews at three other residences.

Officers said they confiscated an ATV, a trailer used for field transport, a variety of firearms, six mounted deer heads, a mounted black bear, a mounted fox, numerous untagged deer and turkey parts, turkey meat, deer meat and spotlights.

Miscellaneous deer processing equipment was also seized.

Charges are:

• Israel Miller, possession of untagged deer parts (10 counts), take more than one deer in deer zone A (three counts), take more than one antlered deer per license year (three counts), hunt and take deer with a rifle (three counts), possession of untagged turkey parts (two counts), sale of deer meat, possess a wild animal contrary to ORC or division rule, take a turkey with a rifle, hunt with the aid and use of a motor vehicle, spotlighting with a firearm, possess a black bear taken unlawfully from out of the state, take a Canada goose with a rifle, and take a Canada goose during the closed season.
• Lynn Miller, tag deer of another and provide false information to a check station.
• Shook, hunt with the aid and use of a motor vehicle (two counts), take deer with a firearm (two counts), spotlighting with a firearm (two counts), take a Canada goose with a rifle, take a Canada goose during the closed season, and take more than one deer in deer zone A.
• Nathan Schindler, possess a wild animal contrary to ORC or division rules (two counts), take more than one deer in deer zone A (two counts), take more than one antlered deer per license year, hunt and take deer with a rifle, and fail to tag a deer.
• Chris Schindler, tag deer of another, and provide false information to a check station.
• Coressel, tag deer of another, provide false information to a check station, and aiding a wildlife offender.

If convicted, the suspects face possible fines and jail time.

A first-time wildlife offense involving the taking or possessing of deer could result in fines of up to $500 and a maximum of 60 days in jail.

Violators may also be required to pay restitution for illegally taken animals, and firearms and other items used in the violations may be ordered forfeited.

The DOW learned of the alleged activity through an anonymous phone call.

Anyone with knowledge of any wildlife violation, especially with the deer gun season approaching, is encouraged to call the hotline at 800-POACHER. The caller can remain anonymous. All calls are confidential.

Ashland, OR – The Feather Atlas of North American Birds is a new web-based resource from the Forensics Lab for the identification of wing and tail feathers. These feathers are often encountered by OLE investigators in wildlife products or associated with bird remains, but can be very difficult to identify with bird field guides. The Fish and Wildlife Service Forensics Laboratory currently contains high-resolution scanned images of the flight feathers of 64 species, including all widespread North American hawks and eagles, falcons, vultures, owls, and doves, as well as roadrunner and other cuckoos and flickers and other woodpeckers. Of particular value to investigators will be the extensive series of scans illustrating the appearance of the wing and tail feathers at various ages in both Bald and Golden Eagles.

This is an ongoing project that will continually add new species. Efforts are currently under way to scan the feathers of gamebirds (grouse, ptarmigan, and quail) for which specimens are available in the Forensics Lab collection. We solicit the donation of specimens for this project. If a species from one the families currently covered on the website is not represented, that means we need a specimen from that species. Examples include Swallow-tailed Kite, Zone-tailed Hawk, Gyrfalcon, White-winged Dove, and Common Ground-Dove. We are also interested in obtaining examples of unusual plumage types, such as very dark or very pale Red-tailed Hawks. We welcome inquiries, comments, or suggestions on the Feather Atlas, which may be sent to PEPPER TRAIL or through the Contact Us page of the website.

Miami, FL (Miami Herald) - A Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer died late Saturday, October 27th, while on duty in the Florida Everglades when her all terrain vehicle apparently crashed during a routine patrol in Broward County, the agency announced Sunday.

Michelle Lawless, 47, had been working in the northwest corner of the Rotenberger Wildlife Management Area, near the L5 Canal and the Palm Beach County line, when she apparently collided with a fixed object. The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating what caused the fatal accident.

Radio contact was lost with Lawless at around 10 p.m., said agency spokesman Jorge Pino. Lawless was found by a fellow officer at around midnight in the desolate area. She was airlifted, but pronounced dead on arrival.

The death is the third in a crash this weekend of a South Florida law enforcement officer. Miami Fire Captain Robert Garcia, 40, died early Saturday in a two-car accident in Miami. Two other teenage girls were seriously injured. Also on Saturday, Mark Strange, 34, an off-duty Boca Raton Police officer was killed in a crash on Florida's Turnpike near Lake Worth in Palm Beach.

Lawless's career with the FWC's Division of Law Enforcement began on May 25, 2003. After completing the FWC academy, she was assigned to Broward where she worked until her death.

"Michelle was a diligent, accomplished officer who died doing what she did so well, protecting Florida's natural resources. This is a painful loss to the entire agency, her family and friends," said Major Brett Norton, commander of law enforcement for the region, in a prepared statement on Sunday.

Lawless is survived by her parents Tom and April Lawless and countless family members and friends.

Wichita, KS (Wichita Eagle) - Labrador retrievers, a dream dog for legal hunters, are becoming a nightmare for poachers. Game wardens are using the breed's natural hunting instincts and strong desire to please their owners to bust people shooting more than their limits of gamebirds and illegally killing deer.

The breed that seems to be the polar opposite of the German shepherds and Doberman pinschers used by some city police departments is also helping Kansas law enforcement catch drug dealers and other criminals.

"It's amazing what these dogs can do for us," said Jason Sawyers, a Topeka-based game warden for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. "They can do in seconds or minutes what could take us hours or days, if we could do it at all."

Two- and four-legged wardens hit the fields in 2003 after more than 400 hours of specialized training in Indiana. More recent pairings do the same amount of training in Kansas.

The Labs are taught to find stashed game, such as ducks buried in marsh mud or deer antlers hidden in a vehicle. They're also taught to search for hunting- and fishing-related evidence, such as empty shell casings that could hold fingerprints or a speck of blood that could be matched to a freezer full of deer meat.

Going against their instinct, the dogs aren't allowed to fetch what they discover to their owners. Instead, they're taught to scratch and bark near their find so evidence isn't damaged.

Learning To Work Together

More than 200 hours is spent teaching the Labs the job of tracking humans under challenging conditions. The wardens are there to learn, too.

Jason Barker, a Wichita-based game warden, said the training taught how to establish the best relationship with his Lab, Moose. That included learning ways to help the dog quickly understand the requested task. "He has a different collar when looking for game or evidence," Barker said during a training session last week. "He wears a harness when he's tracking. As soon as I put something on him, he immediately knows what we're doing."

The long hours of training, plus mandatory weekly practice sessions, also help man and dog bond. "You have to learn how to read your dog, to tell what's going on," Sawyers said. "Every dog has a different tracking profile and you need to be able to tell if he's actually tracking or not." Most of the wardens keep their Labs in their homes to help strengthen that bond and understanding.

The program costs Wildlife and Parks pennies on the dollar compared to what it would cost in man-hours to do what the dogs can do. And much of the money has been donated. Mark Rankin, head of the program, said all of the dogs were donated to the program. Topeka-based Hill's Pet Nutrition Inc. donates the food. Cash donations totaling more than $15,000 have come from the Kansas City Safari Club and Papa John's Pizza, as well as a number of private citizens.

The wardens agree there couldn't be a better breed for their style of work.

Benefits of the Breed

From solid hunting stock, most Labrador retrievers have acute senses of smell and are physically built to withstand a lot of exercise and challenging weather conditions. A high desire to please their handlers helps make them tireless workers. Their playful nature also drives them toward success. Rather than treats as a reward for a job well done, the Labs simply get a chance to play.

"When Chase finds something, she'll scratch at it, then she's looking for her reward, which is playing with a rolled-up towel," said Dan Melson, a Eureka game warden. "She'll run all around and show it off to people like a kid with a big ol' lollipop. She doesn't get to play with it a lot at home, so it's a really big deal to her."

The Lab's gentle temperament is also a plus. "A lot of police dogs, like German shepherds, can be intimidating, but most people I check (for licenses or game) are happy to see Moose with his wagging tail," Barker said. "People start asking a lot of questions about the dogs and we get to talking. They're a natural bridge to the public." The Wildlife and Parks dogs are in high demand for demonstrations at schools and civic organizations.

Law Enforcement Assistance

The Labs have also helped the five wardens develop closer working relationships with other law enforcement agencies. The same nose that sniffs out a poacher's rifle can find evidence tossed from a car by a murder or robbery suspect. The first job for Sawyers' Lab, Rex, was recovering a wallet and knife buried by a shooting suspect.

The dogs will track a drug dealer on the run as willingly as a trespassing squirrel hunter. This year Melson's dog, Chase, tracked and located a meth dealer fleeing deputies in a rugged and remote area of Greenwood County. "I help them when we can because they don't have dogs and they're getting better about calling me if they do something and find evidence of wildlife violations," he said. "It's a win-win situation for both of us."

The White House - Office of the Press Secretary
Crawford, TX - By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows:

Section 1. Purpose. The purpose of this order is to direct Federal agencies that have programs and activities that have a measurable effect on public land management, outdoor recreation, and wildlife management, including the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture, to facilitate the expansion and enhancement of hunting opportunities and the management of game species and their habitat.

Sec. 2. Federal Activities. Federal agencies shall, consistent with agency missions:

(a) Evaluate the effect of agency actions on trends in hunting participation and, where appropriate to address declining trends, implement actions that expand and enhance hunting opportunities for the public;

(b) Consider the economic and recreational values of hunting in agency actions, as appropriate;

(c) Manage wildlife and wildlife habitats on public lands in a manner that expands and enhances hunting opportunities, including through the use of hunting in wildlife management planning;

(d) Work collaboratively with State governments to manage and conserve game species and their habitats in a manner that respects private property rights and State management authority over wildlife resources;

(e) Establish short and long term goals, in cooperation with State and tribal governments, and consistent with agency missions, to foster healthy and productive populations of game species and appropriate opportunities for the public to hunt those species;

(f) Ensure that agency plans and actions consider programs and recommendations of comprehensive planning efforts such as State Wildlife Action Plans, the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, and other range-wide management plans for big game and upland game birds;

(g) Seek the advice of State and tribal fish and wildlife agencies, and, as appropriate, consult with the Sporting Conservation Council and other organizations, with respect to the foregoing Federal activities.

Sec. 3. North American Wildlife Policy Conference. The Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality (Chairman) shall, in coordination with the appropriate Federal agencies and in consultation with the Sporting Conservation Council and in cooperation with State and tribal fish and wildlife agencies and the public, convene not later than 1 year after the date of this order, and periodically thereafter at such times as the Chairman deems appropriate, a White House Conference on North American Wildlife Policy (Conference) to facilitate the exchange of information and advice relating to the means for achieving the goals of this order.

Sec. 4. Recreational Hunting and Wildlife Resource Conservation Plan. The Chairman shall prepare, consistent with applicable law and subject to the availability of appropriations, in coordination with the appropriate Federal agencies and in consultation with the Sporting Conservation Council, and in cooperation with State and tribal fish and wildlife agencies, not later than 1 year following the conclusion of the Conference, a comprehensive Recreational Hunting and Wildlife Conservation Plan that incorporates existing and ongoing activities and sets forth a 10-year agenda for fulfilling the actions identified in section 2 of this order.

Sec. 5. Judicial Review. This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right, benefit, trust responsibility, or privilege, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, instrumentalities, or entities, its officers or employees, or any other person.

GEORGE W. BUSH

Austin - Governor Rick Perry held a press conference at the Gainesville EOC and spoke with the entities involved in the operation. The Governor thanked TPWD and DPS for the professionalism and immediate response stating that we are well prepared due to our experience in dealing with natural disasters. At approximately 3:45 pm, the body of the two year old victim was found by game wardens Jim Lundberg and Trent Herchman. At approximately 4:45 pm, the EOC was working on a press release stating that the other two possible victims were unconfirmed, unverifiable, unfounded putting an end to a continued search for bodies. As of now, wardens are closing out their patrols of the area and are released to regular duty.