Monday, December 28, 2020

The ins and outs of how and why the Ohio Division of Wildlife uses decoys in anti-deer poaching projects

With Ohio Division of Wildlife agent Kevin Behr still in the hospital recuperating after being shot while engaged in an anti-deer poaching law-enforcement project December 20th, some focus is being directed toward the use by the agency of deer decoys, one of which is said to have been involved in the incident.


Behr was struck in the abdomen by a projectile, and three suspects were arrested with various charges being weighed by the Clinton County (Ohio) prosecutor.


The lead investigator in the case is the Clinton County Sheriffs Office. This agency has remained largely silent on the case except for an initial announcement of the incident, the naming of the three defendants and that Behr was working an anti-deer poaching project.


It is not uncommon for deer decoys – almost always a full body mount of an actual deer rather than a plastic facsimile – to be used in such projects.


Similarly, such decoys may be either a doe or a buck with generally six or fewer antler tines, or “points.” And the decoy may or may not feature remote controlled or pre-set motion capabilities.


In fact, the Ohio Division of Wildlife has an entire set of written protocols for the use of decoys in such operations; the do’s and don’ts spelled out in black and white for all of the agency’s commissioned officers to follow.


Decoys are a very effective law enforcement tool,” said Brian Banbury, head of the Wildlife Division’s education and information section.


Banbury has been with the agency for 28 years, including 20 years as a field law enforcement officer who used decoys for anti-deer poaching operations during his tenure in the field.


Asked if decoys have become less effective as their use has become more well known, Banbury said “you’d think so but that’s not the case.”


I know they’ve been used since the 1980s, and I recall one incident where a person shot three times at the decoy. You’d have thought that after the first shot and the deer hadn’t fallen down or else run away he’d have wised up, but he didn’t,” Banbury said.


Decoys also have their time and place as well as when and where they are not nearly so effective. Day time is when they are primarily used, Banbury said, and almost always on private property with the landowner’s consent.


You are looking to stop a specific complaint or problem, and if a landowner has given permission to someone to hunt you don’t want that person mistaking a decoy for the real thing,” Banbury said.


On the flip side, night time is not the best time. That is because a potential violator is probably shining a spotlight into a field – a practice called “jack-lighting.” That activity in and of itself is probable cause for making a stop, so a decoy really isn’t needed in such incidents, says Banbury.


Someone who is willingly shooting at a deer out of season or at night knows he shouldn’t be doing that anyway,” Banbury said. “But we still try and keep the bad guys guessing so anything is still possible.”


In regards to the deportment and dress of officers assigned to a decoy-related anti-deer poaching project, in almost every instance the agent is outfitted in camouflage or standard field clothing, Banbury said.


The object is not for the officer to be seen,” he said.


Commonly as well a minimum number of three officers are involved: One to watch over the decoy while other officers are assigned to one or more “chase” vehicle. This, in order to ensure that an officer is responding in the direction of a poacher’s escaping vehicle, says Banbury.


It’s much more practical to do it this way,” he said.


Banbury said the professionally taxidermist-mounted decoys are foam-filled so more often than not a projectile passes through the white-tail placebo. Yet should a decoy suffer acute damage there’s nothing preventing the Wildlife Division from seeking court-ordered restitution to buy another one in addition to any fine for the actual shooting incident, Banbury said as well.


It’s pretty hard to come up with a defense when a person is caught shooting at a decoy,” Banbury said.


Here are the official Ohio Division of Wildlife’s set of rules regarding the use of deer decoys, and published September 1st, 2017:


1) A supervisor must give prior approval for each project involving a decoy.


2) The prosecutor with jurisdiction must be in agreement with the use of decoys and be briefed on applicable regulations and possible charges.


3) When deer enforcement is the objective a the full-bodied decoy will be a doe or buck with six-point antlers maximum. Exceptions for larger deer antlers may be made with supervisor approval.


4) Any enforcement action within our authority or jurisdiction may be taken when using a decoy,, depending on the circumstance. Charges of jacklighting, mishandling a firearm, road shooting, or hunting with the aid of a motor vehicle maybe be typical. An arrest for a felony… should be first approved by the Law Enforcement Supervisor or prosecutor. A decoy is not an actual wild bird or wild quadruped; therefore while the intention of a suspect may be clear to the officer, charges of taking or attempting to take during the closed season, after hours, etc. involving the decoy should be first reviewed with a prosecutor.


5) Observation of decoys by persons predisposed to commit violations and limited routine observation by the general public are factors when determining decoy placement and concealment. Additionally, when selecting a site for decoy use consider the following:


A. Approval of the landowner.


B. The site will provide for the safety of projectiles impacting beyond the decoy.


C. The site should allow access for assisting officers to stop vehicles, and allow for sufficient open viewing of approaching vehicles from either direction. Adequate personnel and vehicles must be present to operate the decoy and apprehend suspects.


D. Personal safety should be kept in mind when setting up and taking down decoys. Officers should not be on the same side of the road as decoys unless the officer’s position allows for a safe observation point where it is unlikely they or their vehicle would be seen.


- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn

JFrischk@Ameritech.net

JFrischk4@gmail.com

Sunday, December 27, 2020

In closing days of 116th Congress, hundreds of millions of dollars earmarked for Great Lakes protection

 

In the waning days of the 116th Congress it didn’t seem like much good well and cooperation between the political parties was front and center.


An exception was the bipartisan passage of several hundred million dollars worth of expenditures that will directly – and indirectly- benefit the Great Lakes in general and Lake Erie in particular.


In par the cooperation had a backer Ohio’s junior senator Rob Portman. Portman helped shepherd a final bipartisan funding bill.


Among the specific points, Portman told this writer were:


$330 Million for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative: This portion is $10 million above the Fiscal 2020 spending level of $320 million, authorizing increased funding of $375 million in Fiscal Year 2022 and then increase the authorization by $25 million per year until it hits $475 million in Fiscal Year 2026.


Funding for the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Act (HABHRCA): The HABHRCA program through FY2023, which has served as the federal government’s research and response toolkit for harmful algal blooms, including such freshwater bodies as Lake Erie, as part of the program.



$20 Million for the National Park Service (NPS) Centennial Act: The National Park Service Centennial Act legislation was signed into law in 2016 and authorizes the National Park Centennial Challenge Fund and the Second Century Endowment Fund, two public-private partnerships that are providing additional funding to help preserve the country’s national parks.

$4.9 Million for Migratory Birds: The Migratory Birds of the Americas Act provides the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) with financial resources needed to protect the migratory bird populations that make Lake Erie one of the nation’s premier birding destinations. This is important, Portman and others note, because the sport of birding contributes more than $20 million to Ohio’s tourism industry and attracts visitors from across the world each year. The bill will help sustain populations of migratory birds that face threats to their health and habitats.

$1.89 Million for Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act: The s provides critical resources to conserve and restore fish and wildlife populations in the Great Lakes. The legislation, which was signed into law in 2016 as part of the WIIN Act, reauthorizes the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) program to partner with other federal agencies, states, and tribes to develop and execute proposals for the restoration of fish and wildlife resources in the Great Lakes basin.

And Protecting Lake Erie from Dredged Materials: Bipartisan language prohibits the Army Corps of Engineers from dumping material dredged from the Cuyahoga River shipping channel into Lake Erie without the approval from the State of Ohio that it is environmentally safe.


"I love the Great Lakes,” Portman said in an interview.


Part of my childhood was on the Great Lakes, when I was a little kid fishing with my dad on the Great Lakes,” Portman said in his expanded views.


You really can’t fish when the algal blooms come in because they’re so thick you literally can’t get a lure or bait through the algal blooms. And your boat has a tough time getting through it. This is a serious issue. At one point it got so serious in the western basin that it actually affected the water supply for the city of Toledo.”


Expanding on the last item, said Portman, the seriousness of the situation came into full view several years ago he remembers “going there with my pickup truck full of bottles of water to help hand out water because people couldn’t use the water.”


They were even told not to allow their babies to have the formula be made from the water from the faucet because it’s too dangerous, too toxic because these algal blooms had gotten into the water system,” Portman said.


That’s how scary this is if we don’t ensure that we are taking efforts at every level; state, local, private sector, and federal.”


Bluntly, says Portman also, “Lake Erie and the other Great Lakes now provide drinking water for 40 million people.”


We want to be sure that that treasure continues, not just for recreation and fishing and swimming and so on, but also for the water supply for so many Americans.”


- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn

JFrischk@Ameritech.net

JFrischk4@gmail.com

Thursday, December 24, 2020

 

Deer hunters in Ohio made great use of generally favorable weather and a woods-full of whitetails to kill more animals during the recent two-day “bonus” gun season than what’s been seen during a three-year average.

In all, 15,203 deer were taken during the December 19th and 2th hunt. That compares to the three-year average of 12,461 animals. The Ohio Division of Wildlife is now employing a three-year average statistic as a more meaningful metric that when it used a previous year’s number.

And in analyzing the bonus season’s numbers Wildlife Division officials unearthed some interesting points. Officials also offered speculation as to what it all may mean for the up-coming statewide muzzle-loading season set for January 2nd through 5th.

The harvest was better than average, and you’d have to go back to 2011 before seeing a bonus gun season where hunters did as well as this one,” said John “Clint” McCoy, the Wildlife Division’s chief deer management biologist.

We were predicting an increase in the harvest as we saw an uptick of more deer on the landscape. And there was snow at least on Saturday for a lot of Ohio. That helped.”

McCoy says too that while an examination of the county-by-county deer kill does not point to a universal acknowledgment, the data does show that in more than a few counties where the deer kill was up during the recent seven-day general firearms deer-hunting season it was down during the bonus season.

Or the reverse was seen, McCoy said.

For example,” McCoy said, “in Lawrence County the deer harvest during the seven-day season was down 20 percent but up during the bonus season.”

McCoy said that situation was also the case the several other southeast Ohio counties. Among them being Athens, Hocking, Meigs, and Washington.

Washington really stands out,” McCoy said.

Yet in several northwest Ohio counties just the opposite was seen, McCoy said.

I guess it would be somewhat predictable that when you have fewer deer and thus fewer hunters who were all ready success than the harvest would be down, too,” McCoy said.

In terms of what all this may translate into for the up-coming muzzle-loader season, McCoy says that when fused with the bonus season the two dovetail with a combined deer kill of around 25,000 animals.

Each tend to “balance the other out,” so when one has a higher deer kill the other will likely have a lower deer kill, McCoy also says.

If that thinking holds true we could see a deer harvest of around 10,000 animals for the statewide muzzle-loading season, though the weather always plays a role,” McCoy said.













Here is a county-by-county list of all deer checked by hunters during the 2020 two-day deer-gun hunting season. The first number following the county’s name shows the harvest numbers for 2020, and the three-year average of deer taken in 2017, 2018, 2019 is in parentheses.


Adams: 214 (168); Allen: 75 (75); Ashland: 331 (276); Ashtabula: 572 (460); Athens: 250 (203); Auglaize: 74 (64); Belmont: 247 (222); Brown: 189 (156); Butler: 108 (71); Carroll: 422 (336); Champaign: 106 (78); Clark: 54 (40); Clermont: 178 (132); Clinton: 48 (54); Columbiana: 367 (281); Coshocton: 521 (399); Crawford: 94 (95); Cuyahoga: 13 (4); Darke: 51 (59); Defiance: 179 (168); Delaware: 88 (77); Erie: 60 (60); Fairfield: 166 (125); Fayette: 19 (21); Franklin: 39 (27); Fulton: 54 (55); Gallia: 189 (141); Geauga: 192 (118); Greene: 77 (52); Guernsey: 421 (268); Hamilton: 58 (37); Hancock: 102 (97); Hardin: 111 (122); Harrison: 369 (259); Henry: 50 (66); Highland: 213 (177); Hocking: 211 (163); Holmes: 355 (307); Huron: 222 (213); Jackson: 175 (180); Jefferson: 222 (148); Knox: 442 (328); Lake: 54 (38); Lawrence: 133 (86); Licking: 442 (299); Logan: 143 (164); Lorain: 184 (175); Lucas: 14 (21); Madison: 51 (44); Mahoning: 181 (144); Marion: 85 (74); Medina: 176 (150); Meigs: 281 (189); Mercer: 57 (57); Miami: 57 (52); Monroe: 201 (174); Montgomery: 48 (34); Morgan: 240 (157); Morrow: 125 (115); Muskingum: 364 (291); Noble: 247 (175); Ottawa: 42 (35); Paulding: 104 (107); Perry: 199 (168); Pickaway: 45 (54); Pike: 110 (103); Portage: 187 (158); Preble: 63 (83); Putnam: 52 (48); Richland: 292 (272); Ross: 212 (166); Sandusky: 64 (65); Scioto: 148 (150); Seneca: 158 (183); Shelby: 83 (78); Stark: 270 (219); Summit: 69 (43); Trumbull: 364 (299); Tuscarawas: 598 (400); Union: 56 (65); Van Wert: 40 (48); Vinton: 162 (151); Warren: 65 (66); Washington: 282 (190); Wayne: 192 (167); Williams: 154 (147); Wood: 69 (68); Wyandot: 112 (109).
2020 Total: 15,203 Three-Year Average Total: (12,461).


By Jeffrey L. Frischkorn

JFrischk@Ameritech.net

JFrischk4@gmail.com


Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Update of Ohio Wildlife officer shot while on duty rewritten throughout

 

In the aftermath of the shooting December 20 of Ohio Division of Wildlife agent Kevin Behr fragmentary bits and pieces of information have surfaced.


However, none have actually been verified by the Clinton County (Ohio) Sheriffs Office, which is the lead agency in the investigation. Until they are these expressions must be considered speculation.


Behr remains hospitalized in Cincinnati. Individuals desiring the send a get well card to him and comments of support for his family can be sent to the Wildlife Division’s District 5 (D-5) Office at: 1076 Old Springfield Pike, Xenia OH 45385.


Behr’s Wildlife Division’s comrades have developed a funding program to help Behr’s family with associated costs.

Donations may be made at any 5/3 Bank: Kevin J Behr Benefit Account, Routing #042202196 Account #xxxxxx2403.

Or by check, payable to: Ohio Wildlife Officer Lodge 143, denoting Kevin Behr in the memo and mailed to: Tim Rourke P.O. Box 4333, Sidney, Ohio 45365


The solicitation for assistance comes from the The State of Ohio Unit 2 Association, which is comprised of 5 Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) lodges.

On its web site the Unit 2 Association says this of Behr and the incident:

Kevin Behr started his career with the Ohio Division of Wildlife as a Wildlife Area Technician in 1993. He became a Wildlife Officer assigned to Warren County in 1996 and shortly after transferred to Adams County.

After a few years, he was promoted to Wildlife Investigator covering southwest Ohio.

Wildlife Investigator Kevin Behr was injured December 20, 2020 after being shot by a suspect while on assignment in Clinton County, Ohio. He is in serious, but stable condition in the ICU and has already undergone multiple surgeries.

 Our thoughts are with him, his wife Kathy, and his three children. We are hopeful for a swift and complete recovery.

 The road will be long though. Ohio Wildlife Lodge 143 has organized a fundraiser for Kevin and his family to assist them during the challenging times ahead. Please help us reach and exceed our goal.

​“The Behr family is extremely thankful for everyone that has reached out and they continue to ask for your prayers.

​“Special thanks to Cincinnati FOP and The Shield for their immediate assistance.”

The official Clinton County Sheriffs Office release on the subject begins with:

On December 20, 2020 approximately 4:00 pm the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office received a call from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Communication Center advising that a Wildlife Officer had been shot and needed assistance.

Wildlife Officer’s and Natural Resource Officer’s working in the area responded for assistance as well as Officers from the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio State Highway Patrol.

Wildlife Officers were investigating a deer poaching complaint in the area Macedonia Road and Martinsville Road when the shooting occurred. Wildlife Investigator Kevin Behr, a 25- year veteran of the Division, sustained a gunshot wound during this investigation.

Three suspects were taken into custody shortly after the incident...”



By Jeffrey L. Frischkorn

Jfrischk@Ameritech.net

JFrischk4@gmail.com


Sunday, December 20, 2020

Ohio Wildlife officer shot during December 20 deer-poaching investigation; suspect arrested (UPDATED 12/21/2020)

 

(Note: Corrected the age of defendant Brian R. Liming as per update from the Clinton County (Ohio) Sheriffs Office, 12/21/2020.)


In a still evolving and fluid matter, three southwest Ohio individuals have been arrested in an alleged connection in the shooting of Ohio Division of Wildlife commissioned officer, Kevin Behr.


The Clinton County (Ohio) Sheriff’s Office said the incident is alleged to have occurred about 4 p.m., (Sunday), December 20th. This was the last day of Ohio’s two-day, so-called “bonus” statewide firearms hunting season.


Following is the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office Media Release on the incident. More details are expected, perhaps by Monday, December 21st.


The release reads:


On December 20, 2020 approximately 4:00 pm the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office received a call from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Communication Center advising that a Wildlife Officer had been shot and needed assistance.


Wildlife Officer’s and Natural Resource Officer’s working in the area responded for assistance as well as Officers from the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio State Highway Patrol.


Wildlife Officers were investigating a deer poaching complaint in the area Macedonia Road and Martinsville Road when the shooting occurred. Wildlife Investigator Kevin Behr, a 25- year veteran of the Division, sustained a gunshot wound during this investigation.


Three suspects were taken into custody shortly after the incident. Arrested were Brian R. Liming, (43) of Xenia, Oh. Liming is being held on charges of Weapons under disability, a Felony of the 3rd degree, No Deer Permit, a Misdemeanor of the 3 rd degree and Hunting without permission, a Misdemeanor of the 3rd degree.


Thomas Davis, 35 of Jamestown, Ohio is being held on a charge of Aiding an Offender, a Misdemeanor of the 4th degree.


Brian Achtermann, 36 of Midland, Ohio is being held on a charge’s of; No Hunting License, a Misdemeanor of the 4th degree and No Deer Permit, a Misdemeanor of the 3rd degree.


The investigation into this case is being handled by the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office and upon completion will be presented to the Clinton County Prosecutor’s Office for a determination of additional charges.


Martinsville EMS as well as Wilmington EMS responded to provide medical assistance.


Investigator Behr was airlifted from the scene and taken to a Trauma Center for injuries sustained during the shooting. Investigator Behr’s injuries while serious appear to be non-life threatening, he is currently in stable condition.


We would ask for everyone to keep Investigator Behr and his family in their prayer’s during this difficult time.


If anyone has additional information relating to this case, we would ask that they contact the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office Detective Division at 937-382-1611.”


Likewise, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources says that its close-knit community of officers and staff extended their collective concern, thoughts and prayers to Behr and his family.


Kevin, a 25-year law enforcement veteran, was injured today after being shot by a suspect while on assignment in Clinton County.,” said the department’s chief of Communications, Sarah Wickham in a prepared statement.


Ohio Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Officers and Investigators are commissioned state law enforcement officers with unique and challenging duties who serve bravely to preserve and protect Ohio’s state lands and wildlife resources.”


Wickham said also that the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office is leading the investigation into Officer Behr’s shooting.


By Jeffrey L. Frischkorn

JFrischk@Ameritech.net

JFrischk4@gmail.com

 


Saturday, December 19, 2020

(Mostly) good news regarding fate of receiving 2020 Fish Ohio pins

 

The long-delayed journey of the state’s 2020 Fish Ohio program pins is finally seeing daylight just as the sun rises on 2021.


Or not.


Launched 40 years ago the state’s Fish Ohio program annually attracts several thousand participants. Each of these individuals now can print out their own certificate but who are awarded a pin by the Ohio Division of Wildlife for their first submitted catch.


Anglers catching a qualifying member from one of 25 eligible species earn a Fish Ohio award, based on length only. And an angler catching a qualifying member from four or more eligible species earns a Master Angler title and an upgraded pin.

Of the 25 eligible species, five have separate Lake Erie and inland waters minimum length, too.

Recipients typically start receiving their pins beginning as soon as late winter or early spring.

However, a series of unfortunate events saw the pins – which cost about 40 cents each and were made in the Peoples Republic of China – sputter, stall and put the brakes on the program.

Blame COVID-19 which created problems with production and delivery from China of the pins. The situation grew worse as the year progressed as the hacking of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’ web site also made submitting Fish Ohio application problematic.

Earlier in 2020, the Wildlife Division called the situation “fluid” with many “moving parts.”

Now, at long last, the fluidity appears to have jelled and those moving parts are functioning again without the grit to gum up the works. Well, maybe not entirely, anyway.

We have been updated by the vendor that the Fish Ohio pins are produced, packaged, and have been setting on the dock ready to be picked up by the shipping company, (but) it appears that even the Fish Ohio pins are not immune to the shipping struggles that are currently being experienced,” said Brian Banbury, the Wildlife Division’s Executive Administrator for Information and Education


We will get them processed and sent out to our successful anglers just as soon as we receive them.”


As for the tally of 2020 Fish Ohio applications, the number of entries thus far is 17,256. That compares to 16,196 total entries for all of 2019.


The Wildlife Division also issued 857 Master Angler awards in 2019.


We do not have (yet) 2020 broken down for Master Angler,” said Brian Plasters, the Wildlife Division’s Publications Editor.


- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn

JFrischk@Ameritech.net

JFrischk4@gmail.com