Game Wardens

[Susky River Rat]

I guess this thread jinxed me. I got stopped today on the boat. Was a very good exchange! 

[The Budget Angler]

A lot of people don't realize that wardens are also state police officers and may be involved in sting operations and drug busts.  They have a really tough job.  I've only seen wardens a few times, and they've always been pretty nice to me.  I feel bad that they get such a bad rep.  They're enforcing the laws that make sure there are fish for us to catch next year.  We need more of them, to be honest.

 

I also believe we as fishermen have a responsibility to narc when someone else is breaking an angling law.  I called 406-TIP-MONT on people fishing illegally too many times to count, lol.

[Log Catcher]

Many years ago there was an area on the river I fished a lot. One year I got checked twice in a three weeks. It was a different game warden both times. When I got back in that second time I asked the guy that ran that ramp why they were down here so much. He said they were pulling double duty. They were checking people fishing but were also looking for marijuana fields.

[Zcoker]

There's good ones, decent ones, and weird ones here in south Florida. And I know that they're all "just doing their jobs". But I had one write me up for fishing off a fishing bridge in the Keys with cut bait. First off, he makes me open my bait cooler, then he gets in there between the ice and takes the cut bait out, piece by piece, and lays it down on the hot pavement. Then he starts putting it together like a puzzle. Once together, he measures the fish, which was acceptable duh. Then he says that I can't cut the bait on the bridge, has to be cut on dry land before it's taking out on the bridge. Never heard of that one. I was like, "what?" I said that I didn't cut it on the bridge. Says he's giving me an official warning anyway. I took the warning with an ironic smile. Watcha gonna do. 

[Bankc]

I only have nice things to say about any game warden I've ever met.  

[islandbass]

@rboat:  maybe you should have tried using the Jedi mind trick 😂

[DaubsNU1]

We hunted public federal waterfowl production areas in South central Nebraska for the duck season openers many, many years. Game wardens, both state and federal, were always checking us,  respectful, just doing their job...except for one.

 

These marshes were walk-in only, no powered vehicles. Wardens would frequently check us when walking out, or at our trucks finishing up the day. A few would walk in through the marsh to check us. No problem, happy to comply.

 

We were hunting along a levee when a federal game warden drives his truck out the levee, and stops 5 yards from us, hops out and demands to see our guns, licenses, shells, any birds we had harvested.

 

Once we were all checked and cleared, we politely asked the warden to move along, so we could finish our hunt. He got a little growly...so I asked if we could drive our trucks out the levee to pick up decoys and gear(?). He said vehicles were not allowed in the federal waterfowl production area.

 

So me being the smart-butt that I am, asked if he has special permission to drive out to us? He got in his truck and left. Jack wagon.

[Ski]

Anything on your boat that don't belong there?

Yes sir, you.

[DinkDonkey30]

We’re pretty lucky most of our Officers are pretty decent. We were given a hard time one evening by a retired guy claiming we were on plan after dark. He was more irritated we were bow fishing on a boat with bright lights more than anything. So he called dnr we waited they took information and gave a warning for speeding at night.Other than that I’ve had nothing but positive interactions. Most of the officers recognize my boat and truck so they stop to chat and ask if we’ve seen anything going on. I fish 3-5 days a week in my area.

[Bankc]

On 4/20/2024 at 8:21 PM, TheLastBestFish said:

A lot of people don't realize that wardens are also state police officers and may be involved in sting operations and drug busts.  They have a really tough job.  I've only seen wardens a few times, and they've always been pretty nice to me.  I feel bad that they get such a bad rep.  They're enforcing the laws that make sure there are fish for us to catch next year.  We need more of them, to be honest.

Yeah, this is an area of contention.  Game wardens often don't need search warrants in situations where the regular police would.  So in the past, they've used game wardens to illegally search people and property to circumvent the work of gathering evidence and getting a warrant the right way.  Then, if you're poor and have a court appointed lawyer who doesn't have the time to give your case the attention it deserves, they'll recommend you just settle to lesser charges rather than fight this illegal maneuver.  Whereas if you can afford your own lawyer, you can fight the charges and get the whole thing thrown out, because it's an obvious violation of the constitution.  It's one of the ways the police can game the system.  Game wardens usually don't appreciate doing this, as it puts them in unnecessary risk, is technically illegal, and distracts them from doing their real job.  We don't see as much of it as we used to, maybe 10 or more years ago.  Word has gotten out on it, and judges and juries don't tolerate it as much as they used to.  

 

Technically, game wardens are usually allowed to enter and search your property without a warrant, but only under the suspicion of hunting or fishing illegally.  They can't do it for things like suspected drug activity, as an example.  They need a warrant for that, just like every other police officer.  However, if they say someone is suspected of poaching (which in this example is a lie), raid the property, and then find the drugs, then they can still prosecute you for the drugs, even if they find no evidence of poaching, so long as they had reason to assume you were poaching.  Like I said, a good lawyer can easily prove this was an illegal search and get the charges dismissed, but not everyone can afford a good lawyer, which is what they're relying on when they do this.   

 

Still, I don't blame the game wardens for this.