Sarah MillerJacksonville State

UniversityFall Semester

Region 1

The Wildlife Resource DivisionLaw Enforcement

<>The Wildlife Resources Division is one of many divisions that falls under the Department of Natural Resources.

<>My internship was concentrated in the Law Enforcement sector of WRD.

<>I also spent time with the Environmental Protection Division and Game Management.

<>Working with the different groups helped me to understand the importance of every sector and how they work together.

Law EnforcementVISION STATMENT

The vision of the Law Enforcement Section is to ensure that Georgia's natural resources will be

conserved for our present and future generations.

Law EnforcementThe mission of the Law Enforcement Section is to conserve our natural resources and to protect the people we serve.  We maintain

public support through fair and vigorous law enforcement, quality education, and

community involvement. 

Law EnforcementA Conservation Ranger is a peace officer that is

P.O.S.T certified by Georgia and has been

hired by the Department of Natural Resources. They enforce wildlife,

environmental, boating, and other State and

Federal laws, rules, and regulations in assigned areas. Each officer is

assigned a county that they patrol by either

vehicle, boat, ATV, foot and at times aircraft. They also conducted

hunter education class in his/her county. There are

also special units that one could work with. For

example, there is a K-9 unit.

There is a K-9 unit in every region. The dogs

are trained in officer protection and tracking of human and firearm scent. In region 1 RFC

Brooks Varnell is the K-9 handler. Rock is his K-9. On Sat. November 5th Brooks used Rock in a

night hunting incident to find two guns that the suspects hide in the woods. He also used Rock to track to one

suspect to fled from Sgt. Mike Barr.

K-9 Unit

Law EnforcementPatrolling

When an officer is not answering a complaint they

will be patrolling. For example, on opening day of dove season Sgt. Mike Barr,

Cpl. Lee Burns and I patrolled different dove

fields that hunters were at. We would check for licenses,

shotgun plugs and bag limits. We did not come

across any invalid licenses but we did encounter a man who had over 40 dove in his cart. He explained that he was just picking up dove

from other hunters and had intentions of returning them once everyone was back at camp. Mike and Lee did not issue him a citation and just

told him the laws of receiving others game.

Law EnforcementBaited Stands

In north Georgia it is illegal to bait deer. Even though it is illegal, it is practiced everywhere. While

interning we worked many baited deer stands. Some were called in on a complaint and others were found

while on patrol. Corn and salt blocks are the most common forms of bait used, however some people

use fruit and peanut butter as well. Once finding the bait the officers will mark it with a GPS and return to

the area when a hunter will most likely be around

Law Enforcement

HINA HIN is a hull identification number that must be on a boat before it is registered. Boats that are built after 1972 must have a HIN. Officers

are required to meet with a boat owner to issue the vessel a HIN if one is not

permanently stamped on. They then issue a HIN to the boat and assist in registration if

needed.

Law EnforcementPOACHING

Poaching is the illegal hunting, killing or capturing of animals. This can occur in a variety of ways.  Poaching can refer to the failure to comply with regulations for legal harvest, resulting in the illegal taking of wildlife that would otherwise be allowable. Examples include: Taking without a license or permit, use of a prohibited

weapon or trap, taking outside of the designated time of day or year, taking on property of another without

permission and taking of a prohibited sex or life stage. The first poaching case I worked was with Cpl. Lee Burns.

Sgt. Mike Barr gave us a complaint off of HWY 41 and Old Acworth-Dallas Hwy. Once arriving Lee Burns and I

searched through the woods to find a man that had been dropped off earlier in the morning. Once Lee spotted him he was forced to chase him down and put him in custody. He was a convicted felon who’s parole did not allow him to have any form of a weapon. He was also caught on

the Corps of Engineers property. Once handing him over to the police we went back and found a cross bow and 3

arrows. He was placed in Cobb County jail.

Law Enforcement

Poaching ( Night Hunting) Night Hunting has been very popular this

year. Bartow County has been hit hard with night hunters. On Sat. November 5th Sgt. Mike Barr caught two boys shinning fields.

We used Rock to help us find evidence needed to charge the boys. However, one

boy was 16 and could only be charged as a juvenile. Cpl. Elmore also had problems

with the same boy and decided to charge him for Gordon County incidents that

happened.

Law Enforcement

Peace Officer DutiesAlong with the Conservation duties, the Rangers also conduct needed peace officer duties. Sgt. Mike Barr questioned three boys on the Etowah

River. Come to find out they had illegal substances on them.

The Conservation Rangers also assist local police department when needed. I did not take pictures due to the severity of the situation, but GSP was shot at over 4o times by three Hispanics. DNR

rangers that were in the area showed up to assist the situation. They were asked to patrol

the waters on Lake Allatoona.

EPDEnvironmental Protection

DivisionWhile working

with EPD I learned about how they

function and what they do to help

preserve Georgia. We went to

different land fills to make sure that

the companies were following health code.

Goofs

I just want to say Thank You for giving me the chance to intern with the Conservation Rangers of Region 1. I have learned a great deal about Conservation during my internship and have gained new hopes of joining the Division. Thank you again.