BEWARE OF TROOPER DECOYS!!!!!!

W

Western Rifleman

Member
Are you guys ready for this!???? (HONEST TO GOD!!)

Ya know, I'm a retired police officer...been pro-law enforcement all my life, and I will have NOTHING to do with "cop-bashers". I just won't do it. But I've heard scores and scores (to a hundred?) of "horror stories" of Alaska "Brownshirt Fish & Wildlife Trooper" abuses over the past 18 years here in Alaska. I know of them personally to both acquaintances and friends alike (never to me as of yet).

So the other day I run into a guy who needs to quickly purchase a mounted "stuffed" Grouse. Why?? He was driving down Pt. McKenzie road in the Mat-Su Valley last month or so....Grouse season was open and he had a hunting license. He runs over a Grouse on the road, stops his vehicle to retrieve it to bring it home to eat it. All of a sudden here come 2 Brownshirt Fish & Wildlife Troopers rushing over (the Big Bust!)who were hidden in the bushes and they bust him for attemping to take a "Grouse" "by unlawful method". Only thing is: IT WAS A STUFFED DECOY GROUSE!!!!! NOT EVEN A LIVE ANIMAL!!! PULLEEZZEE!!! Is THAT all these people have to do???

This guy asks the trooper: "Hey, thats not even an animal!; its an innate DEAD feather object. And if somebody hits a moose with their car, do they get a ticket and arrested like this"?? Fishcop says: "No, but thats different".

So, after the Judge (shaking his head)has to ask the Prosecuter "what law did this guy break??", they have a "conference".... then the guy pleads no contest to get rid of the situation...and gets a $300.00 fine, and has to "replace the Alaska State Trooper Decoy Bird" or pay another $200.00 extra for it.

I dunno guys, I just, I just am blown away by all this. To each his own I guess, and maybe some of you guys (no doubt) have seen similar things or been pinched for something you didn't do by these brownshirts, but to me, THIS is not good law enforcement ... and THIS has no place in our Country.

In any event, truth is stranger than fiction ... and guys while were at it, PLEASE take CAREFUL note of any "birds" you may see on or near a roadway.

Good and Safe hunting!

Cas
 
That's beautiful!

We got meth freaks out stealing anything they can pack 24/7, and these guys are setting traps for the general public.
 
Now did he hit this bird intentionally?

I hit one two years ago (Accident), and didn’t want to leave it so when I was driving by Fish and Feathers over at Palmer I thought I would drop it off. When I went to drop it off and tell them what happened the guy behind the counter asked if I had a hunting license. I said yes and he asked to see it. I showed it to him and he told me to take the bird home.

If the fella intentionally ran the bird over then got out and harvested it I could see where he would have problems, but I don’t have all the details.

I have seen Fish and Feathers do less then explainable things on two occasion though. Once was at Montana Creek during King season. It was supposed to open above the bridge on Friday night at midnight. So we all (About 50) stood around until midnight and started fishing, along come to F&F at about 1:30 in the morning and they are passing out tickets like crazy for fishing in an unauthorized area. They had almost a mini riot with everyone whipping out the fishing regulations and pointing out the opening date and time. Well I stood there and heard the Female F&F say it didn’t matter what the regulations stated, no one was to be fishing there and they continued to pass out tickets. I bet 30 of then got tickets. Well I talked to a couple of people a month or so later and they stated that they were taking to court, but got a call from someone at F&F telling them that the tickets were being voided. No apologies or nothing. I just hope the rest didn’t just pay the tickets.

Todd
 
Can you sue the state if a bird breaks the grill on your car? What if you have to wash the blood off your car? I'd sue man. We've got rights you know. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

There is this giant ranch up near our elk hunting area. They have the heck posted out of this property. No Hunting, No Tresspassing, Violators will be prosecuted, Private property etc.

Driving to town last year I stopped on the road that passes his ranch to check out a giant bull elk on his property with my binocs. The giant bull was one of those fake elk. Man, I stopped just to check the thing out and I felt violated, kind of like I was being accussed of something for just stopping to check the thing out. I have no idea who was watching but I rolled down my window, lifted my finger in discust and drove away!!!!
 
Down here on the peninsula they do a lot of the decoy busting for grouse. I pulled up to one on the side of swanson river rd. one day and got out of the truck because I could tell it was a fake,just to take a look at it, and out came the trooper from the bushes. I wasnt hunting just out to fish a lake, but a few days later I saw in the paper several people were busted that weekend out there for shooting on the rd. For that particular area I think its a good thing, that rd. gets alot of traffic and I have pulled around a corner before only to see guns pointed in my direction and guys blasting at grouse in the middle of the rd.

On another note, a buddy of mine was busted out on the duck flats here for what I think was a bogus charge. He had been grouse hunting earlier that morning and had 1 4-10 shell in his hunting jacket mixed in with his 12 guage steel shot. A trooper checked him and he got a ticket for carrying lead shot. Went to anchorage to court to fight it and the judge said he couldnt really read the handwriting on the ticket and asked my buddy for an explanation of what the charge was. The judge threw it out because he felt it was ridiculous and he couldnt read the ticket. The following spring my buddy was applying for a bear bait permit and the same trooper was at the office issuing the permits. He asked my friend what kind of fine he got for the ticket and my buddy told him the judge threw it out cause he couldnt read the violation, the trooper told him "oh yeah lets see if he can read this one" and wrote him another ticket. He ended up having to go back to anchorage again to fight it and the same judge threw it out again and said he would be personally contacting the trooper to voice his displeasure with wasting his time. To me thats a little ridiculous and abuse of power.
 
I hope you guys don't pass judgment on all of us enforcement officers. I thingk most of us use discretion when we are doing our job, that goes for Police Officers and Conservation Officers. I cant speak for the officers in Alaska, but here in northern Minnesota will give the law abiding citizen a fair chance when it comes to things like have been discussed above. I know with me honesty counts for alot, but lie to me and your through. If you deal with one of us give us a chance before you make up your mind.
 
Had a situation quite a few years back where I shot a jackrabbit that was on a national monument(old railroad tressle in the middle of nowhere, still no excuse). I wasnt actually on the tressle (250 yds away) when I shot. The Fish Cop came along later and asked if I was the one who shot it and I told him yes and he wrote me a ticket for taking protected wildlife (jackrabbits are varmints in utah but he was on the monument so...). He could have pretty much taken my underwear if he had wanted to but he looked at the situation and decided that It was not that serious. Sorry to ramble but what im saying is that yes I was wrong, and that just like all law enforcement, not all fish cops are bad so you probably shouldnt lump them all together in one bad bunch.
 
Cas,

I think that is really stupid, seeing as how slick Point. Mack road is right now. Almost dangerous at point, to say the least. Been hunting predators out there (with not luck so far) the past couple of days, and to try and swerve a STUFFED GROUSE could likely have your vehicle on its top. Those guys must be really bored to being doing crap like that. When I'm out that way again, I'll just run it over and not stop. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif Roadkill!
 
Howdy Matt...

Well ...

this incident occurred at least a couple months ago ... dry road, no snow, no ice, no nothin'! Gee, I wonder what the salary is for say a 10 hour day for two (2) Alaska State Troopers to be hidden in the bushes with their vehicle, equipment, El-Big-Brother Video Camera Zeroed in on a stuffed dead hunk of feathers!??

Take a look at this operation and set up: THEY ARE *C R E A T I N G* CRIME WHEN NO CRIME EXISTS IN THE FIRST PLACE!!

WE pay for that, and the citation didn't even have a statute number written on it. I Have a copy of the citation.

These Fish & Wildlife Brownshirts are an agency totally Out of Control, and have been for many years. Perhaps they will shortly have their brown (appropriate color for them) wings clipped -- watch the newspapers here.

Cas
 
THAT is an interesting and valid question.

I would opine that they would be AT LEAST PARTIALLY responsible if that happened.

I have a friend who just flew in from KY. to visit me here for a few weeks .... on the flight from MN. to Anchorage, she overheard conversations from passengers on her flight complaining of the Nazi-like behavoir and tactics of Alaska Fish & Wildlife Troopers. Is this a small world here or WHAT!????!??? Its a damn shame, and its shameful and dispicable. Hopefully with the new Gov. of Alaska, former U.S. Senator Frank Murkowski, (who also has a VERY serious concern on our Predator control problem here (lack of), much of this Nazi-like behavoir will quickly cease; he has indicated so. Over the past 4 years as our U.S. Senator, his office has received Over 500 complaints about these Alaska Troopers.

Hopefully proper police conduct will soon return to Alaska.
 
You know, I read about this in the Police Blotter of the Frontiersman. I commented to my brother that I thought it was unusual for someone to get nabbed in that area for shooting grouse on the road. I mean...it would be hard to catch someone there with all the straight roads and such.

Then when I read your post on how it happened I understood more. While I agree that the brown shirts likely have better things to do than this, I am willing to give them the benefit of the doubt (until I know better). I have a hunch that they may be responding to local complaints about people shooting grouse on the road.

I don't generally defend these guys...I'm the one convinced that they have a locator chip embedded in me somewhere...HA They seem to find me everytime I go hunting or fishing. My buddies are nervous about going with me because they know we will likely be checked by the brownshirts.
 
A few years back a friend of mine got nabbed for shooting a decoy spruce hen in the road... With a blowgun. It was eventually thrown out. After that happened to him I made a mechanical snare out of an old fly rod blank, some picture hanging wire, a spring and a make shift trigger. I started driving the roads in search of spruce chickens. Ak law states that you may not shoot on from or across, right. To be honest, I was hoping to find the infamous decoy. I never came across the little feathery entrapment decoy; but this topic has rekindled a desire to find the thing. I think I'll dig out my snare pole and pack it with me this moose season.
 
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