FWC Division of Law Enforcement Weekly Report 1/5/18 – 1/11/18
January 24, 2018
Escambia County County
Officer Pettey checked a pair of fishermen at Quintette Boat Ramp. He discovered that they were in possession of 120 panfish, 20 over their allowable daily bag limit. A notice to appear citation was issued for the violation.
Okaloosa County County
Officer Pifer was on land patrol responding to River’s Edge Boat Ramp in Holt in reference to an individual shooting at black vultures, commonly referred to as buzzards, on the Yellow River. The complainant provided a description of the shooter and vessel. When the officer arrived, the complainant was standing by and identified the subject’s vehicle. FWC Officer White arrived on scene to assist. Within a few minutes, the officers observed a vessel with one individual matching the description given by the complainant, returning to the boat ramp. The officer determined the vessel operator was returning from a hunting trip. The subject had shot one wood duck. A resource inspection revealed that the shotgun was unplugged, capable of holding more than three shells. The individual admitted that he shot at a buzzard but did not hit it. The subject was issued a notice to appear resource citation for failure to plug the shotgun and a warning for shooting at a protected species.
Officer Corbin was on land patrol at the Fisherman’s CO-OP in the Destin Harbor when he observed a federally documented commercial fishing vessel tying to a dock. The officer determined the vessel was returning from a commercial fishing trip. The vessel harvested red snapper and vermilion snapper. Under the federal commercial vessel program, when landing red snapper, the operator or owner of vessel must report a three-hour landing notification prior to docking, which did not occur. Officer Corbin had seen the vessel in the harbor earlier with an individual cleaning the fish and tossing some back into the water. The officer determined the deckhand was tossing all undersized fish back into the water. The remaining fish included undersized red snapper and undersized vermilion snapper, both in violation of federal and state fisheries laws. The operator of the vessel was found in the cabin sleeping. In plain view, Officer Corbin observed glass smoking pipes next to the boat operator used in a method of inhaling illegal drugs. Residue on the pipe was field tested as positive for methamphetamine. In close vicinity, other additional smoking glass pipes were found along with a small container with substance that tested positive for methamphetamine. The operator was arrested, handcuffed and transported to Okaloosa County Jail where the intake process was completed. The intake officer located a controlled substance in the operator’s wallet. The operator was charged with two felonies and one misdemeanor. A National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) officer arrived on scene to address the failure of providing a landing notification and the undersized fish.
Officer Pifer met with a complainant after they reported witnessing an antlerless deer shot from a state highway. The complainant provided a statement of what he observed which included a tag number of the vehicle. Officer Pifer located the deer which appeared to have been shot with a shotgun. Lieutenant Hollinhead met Officer Pifer at the residence of the registered owner of the vehicle. After a short interview, the driver and passenger admitted to shooting the deer from the side of the roadway. Both subjects were charged with taking an antlerless deer and the passenger was also charged with discharging a firearm from the roadway.
Santa Rosa County
Officer Hutchinson was working late at night in the Blackwater State Forest when he observed two vehicles with a bright light being shined from the driver side window of the first vehicle. As he watched, the driver shined the light into the tree line and across an open field on private property. When the two vehicles stopped at a large tree beside the roadway, Officer Hutchinson pulled in behind them and observed one of the subjects standing in the road shining his light in the top of the tree. Officer Hutchison determined that the men were hunting raccoons with the use of a light from a moving vehicle which is prohibited. Officer Hutchison issued the man who used the light a notice to appear for attempting to take racoon with the use of a light from a moving vehicle.
Officer Hutchinson and Lieutenant Hahr assisted Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources with a night hunting case before the 2017 hunting season. The case involved two subjects who killed two bucks in velvet in Alabama at night before the hunting season. Officer Hutchinson and Lieutenant Hahr caught the subjects in possession of the deer in Florida and worked in conjunction with the Alabama officers to make the case. Officer Hutchinson appeared in court in Alabama along with the Alabama Conservation Officers resulting in a conviction for one of the subjects. The other subject failed to appear in court.
Officer Jones was on patrol in South Santa Rosa County, in Navarre Beach, when he noticed a man exit an old sailboat that was anchored in Santa Rosa Sound. The man boarded a small dinghy and proceeded to the boat ramp. As Officer Jones approached the vessel to conduct a boating safety check, the operator of the vessel turned the vessel and began to motor away. The subject refused to comply with repeated instruction to return to the dock and returned to his sailboat, where he removed the small motor from the dinghy. The operator then paddled to the dock where Officer Jones was located and was placed under arrest for interference with an FWC officer and booked into the Santa Rosa County Jail. The subject was also issued a uniform boating citation for an expired registration.
Walton County
Lieutenant Hollinhead and Officer Letcher received information about a subject taking an illegal deer. The officers located the subject and questioned him about the information they received. The officers were provided the antlers of the deer which measured only four inches and the name of another subject involved with taking the deer. Both subjects were juveniles and were educated on the law of antler restrictions.