MIKE BRAUN Wildlife officers deserve praise

Ohio's wildlife officers have decidedly tough jobs in making sure hunters, anglers and others who use the outdoors follow the letter of the law.
The reports of their dealings with the outdoor-loving public run the gamut from those that often leave them chuckling to others that leave them just shaking their heads.
For instance, one evening this past autumn, Trumbull County state wildlife officer Brian Banbury found a couple of teenagers in a wildlife area parking lot "sparking," as they used to say.
Banbury broke up the romantic interlude and exhorted the young man to instead take his girl to a hunter education course to make better use of their time.
She was there
According to the Ohio Division of Wildlife's District Three office in Akron, Banbury walked into a hunter education course two weeks later and, to his surprise, found the young lady who had been in the automobile that day.
What gives the story an even better ending, and some satisfaction for Banbury, is that on the opening day of gun season, the young lady bagged a nice 8-point buck.
In a less humorous story, wildlife officers helped put the "sting" on a local man over a young deer.
According to Bill Beagle at the DOW office in Akron, the story actually began around the end of December 2001.
Beagle said a Columbiana County resident had a young deer frequenting their property and the family enjoyed watching it on a regular basis. The landowner also placed a video camera in record mode to capture some of the young deer's antics
When the residents went to watch the video later, they saw a truck pull up and two guys grab what was later determined to be a yearling.
Deer was returned
Beagle said the landowner found out who the two men were, and the deer was "returned."
However, Beagle reported, a couple of months later the deer came up missing again.
When the landowner called one of the men involved with the earlier deer incident, he said he didn't take the deer. However, he told the resident, if the deer shows up again he can help the landowner get a permit to keep it.
Unbeknownst to the man, the landowner taped the conversation and sent it to the DOW along with other pertinent information.
After an investigation by the DOW, Beagle said, the man, Craig Readshaw, 50, of Salem, was charged with several wildlife violations including hunting on private land without permission. Readshaw eventually paid $600 and court costs, had jail time suspended, was placed on unsupervised probation and ordered to perform 40 hours of community service.
Aside from these stories, you should know that our Ohio officers are a dedicated group, spending quite a bit of time and effort upholding state law in regards to the outdoors.
What they do
A wildlife officer is assigned to each of Ohio's 88 counties and is required to live in that county. They are outside in all kinds of weather, at all times of the day, and put themselves in many dangerous situations, often involving weapons and/or vicious animals.
Their "official" duties include: Enforcing fish and game laws, serving warrants, and conducting pollution investigations. They also conduct educational programs, advise landowners on dealing with wildlife and keep local conservation clubs updated on wildlife projects and regulations.
Wildlife officers have statewide jurisdiction and often work alone. Officers are required to execute search warrants, make arrests, investigate reported violations, prepare affidavits, and testify in court of behalf of the Division of Wildlife. State statistics show that -- as a group -- they make approximately 10,000 arrests annually and have a conviction record of more than 98 percent.
Some who enjoy our Buckeye outdoors feel that wildlife officers are nothing more than a nuisance. But, without the officers' diligent efforts, there are a number of people who would take advantage of the law and of the outdoors.
The next time you run across one of the men and women in khaki and green, give them a "job well done." They deserve it.
braun@vindy.com