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FeedIL: Cuffs and Collars Issue: 11
Region I
A District 7 CPO worked a water patrol in Henderson County. The patrol was focusing on small bodies of water in conjunction with operation Warm Weather/Cold Water. The officer encountered a father and son in a canoe on a flooded creek. The small child was wearing an adult life jacket. The father did not have a PFD in the canoe. The father was cited for the PFD violation. Additional warnings were issued for other boating infractions.
While on foot patrol at Spoon River State Forest, an abandoned untagged deer stand was observed. It was removed and a yellow seizure tag was left in its place. It will be kept in storage until ownership is determined or it is forwarded to the Pawnee Service Center for final disposition.
As part of Operation Warm Weather/Cold Water, a safety exam of a canoe was conducted on Henderson Creek. The canoeist did have the required PFD on board but his borrowed canoe did not have valid registration. A citation was issued for operation of an unnumbered watercraft.
A District 6 CPO investigated a felony criminal damage to state supported property which occurred within Rock Cut State Park in Winnebago County. A vehicle with off-road all terrain mud tires smashed through a section of barrier fencing surrounding a parking lot, as well as creating several deep ruts in the gravel and dirt berm along one of the entrance roads to the park.
A CPO searched the Illinois River in Putnam, Bureau, and LaSalle counties for a missing person. The leg of the person had been found across from Starved Rock State Park on the north bank of the Illinois River.
Due to warming weather and local area high school spring breaks, enforcement efforts were increased by Winnebago County CPOs to address the spike in park use. Several traffic citations were issued to teen drivers for speeding in the park as well as seat belt and insurance violations addressed. Trail foot patrols were also increased to deter vandalism, alcohol and potential drug use in the park.
A District 7 CPO investigated a subject for leaving the roadway at the Woodford Fish and Wildlife Area. The subject intentionally drove his truck through most of the camping area and a grass field, leaving eight-inch deep ruts and knocked over two signs. The CPO observed several circular ruts and discovered that one of the posts had knocked the front license plate off the vehicle. The CPO contacted the owner and the subject apologized.
A CPO closed out an illegal harvesting of ginseng case. Two individuals had illegally harvested ginseng from private property and also failed to plant the berries of the ginseng plants that they took. They were found guilty of unlawfully harvesting ginseng and were fined $1,500 each, and $500 from each individual was awarded to the landowner for restitution.
Two District 7 CPOs closed out a pollution/fish kill case in Fulton County where Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced that the owner of Riverland Bio-fuels near Canton has agreed to pay a $15,000 civil penalty and reimburse the state nearly $3,000 for deaths to wildlife and the fish kill that occurred at its ethanol plant last year.
A District 1 CPO checked trout fishermen during the opening day of trout season in Stephenson and JoDaviess counties.
A TIPs complaint was received that stated a person was hunting during the youth turkey season by himself. The youth was located and he was hunting by himself but it was found his Dad was hunting with his twin brother about 200 yards away. A written warning was issued to his father for not being in direct control of his son.
CPOs ran details checking trout fishermen at the Coleta Trout Ponds and Pine Creek where DNR stocked trout. One CPO hid in a location observing trout fishermen at the Coleta trout ponds. Another CPO dressed in plain clothes and had a plain vehicle and fished in the ponds. One person left in a hurry and they were not able to catch him that day. A CPO did a follow-up interview with this person and determined he took nine trout, four over the limit. Two citations and two written warnings were issued.
A CPO worked a plain clothes/vehicle detail at White Pines State Park. Multiple subjects were observed for several hours. Only two subjects caught a limit of five trout. Those subjects then left the park. A drive through the park was conducted to make sure they left the park. The subjects did not return.
A CPO made an arrest of a male subject in Shabbona Lake State Park for driving while license suspended. The male subject will have a mandatory court date next month in DeKalb County.
A CPO made an arrest of a male subject for possession of cannabis and possession of drug paraphernalia. The arrest occurred at Starved Rock State Park in Illinois Canyon where the CPO was on foot patrol and observed the male subject smoking cannabis.
While on patrol in District 1, a CPO checked a Wisconsin resident fishing an Illinois lake with an Iowa non-resident fishing license. Further investigation revealed the individual's fishing privileges were suspended in Wisconsin and Illinois due to failure to pay child support and therefore could not purchase an Illinois fishing license. The individual was arrested.
A CPO was checking individuals for compliance of the fish code in Starved Rock State Park. The CPO noticed a 12-pack of Bud Light in the trunk of a car next to a bucket of fish. As the CPO was walking the shoreline to see if there were additional fish that the fisherman had, he noticed five crushed Bud Light beer cans by a rock next to the river. The CPO picked up a can and brought it to the car. He compared it to the other Bud Light beer cans. The cans matched. The fisherman was issued a citation for pollution of a waterway. Upon issuing the citation, the CPO was notified that the individual was wanted on a warrant for failing to appear in court. The individual had failed to appear in court for three citations that the CPO had issued him in 2004. The charges were possession of alcohol against posted regulations, littering, and fishing without a license. The fisherman was taken to the jail where he was lodged on the $4,000 warrant.
A District 1 CPO attended a court hearing for a non-resident who falsified his hunting license and deer permits. The Iowa man claimed he was an Illinois resident by using his father's address. He pleaded guilty to the Class A misdemeanor charge of falsification of DNR documents and the Class B misdemeanor charge of unlawfully taking a deer with the falsified permit. He was fined $720 total including a civil penalty of $250 for the deer taken.
Region II
In January, a CPO conducted a traffic stop which led to the arrest of the vehicle's two occupants. The driver was arrested for DUI while the passenger was arrested on an outstanding warrant. A search of the vehicle located a suspicious material, the driver identified as Damiana - a legal substance smoked for its high-like effects. The substance was sent to the lab for analysis. Crime lab results identified the material as JWH-18, a synthetic form of cannabis. The drug is listed in Illinois as a Schedule I drug, the highest level of restriction for use. Possession of the drug constitutes a Class 4 felony. New arrest warrants were issued for both subjects. The driver turned herself in. Her boyfriend fled once advised of the warrant. He was located later in the day hiding in a bathtub at a friend's residence. He was taken into custody then transported to the sheriff's department for further processing.
A CPO received an anonymous tip via the Springfield office regarding a roofing company dumping construction waste and covering it up with mulch. CPOs interviewed the business owner, who claimed trespassers were dumping on his property, but he did admit to covering it up with mulch. There were also four 55-gallon drums on the property, one of which was leaking an oily substance. The CPO notified the Lake County Health Department which is authorized by the Illinois EPA to investigate these types of complaints.
A CPO cited a subject on Gages Lake for possession of a 14-inch largemouth bass. The minimum size limit is 15 inches.
A CPO received information about a subject he arrested in 2004 which has had an active felony obstruction warrant since 2005. The subject was convicted of second-degree sexual assault of a child in Wisconsin. He is currently serving a 10- year sentence due to be released in 2016. The prison was asked to notify the agency near his release date, and his warrant will remain active in Lake County.
Region III
No reports
Region IV
A CPO investigated an individual who was using a false Social Security number to obtain a fishing license. He owes child support and is unable to obtain one with his real number. The individual purchased a license in Madison County in 2009 and a license in Jersey County in 2010. The individual was issued two citations for falsification of information to obtain a fishing license.
A CPO led an investigation into what was called critter bashing. Several CPOs in Districts 9 and 10 assisted in interviewing several suspects in two days. Individuals were driving around Schuyler County at night and bashing raccoons and opossums with anything they could find. Charges are pending.
District 9 and the Missouri Department of Conservation conducted a river detail on the Mississippi River from the Windfield Dam to the Canton Dam. They were looking for commercial and sport fishermen. Two subjects were arrested for fishing without a license. One subject was arrested on a Missouri warrant for failure to appear.
Region V
A CPO had charged a subject last deer season with unlawful taking of deer, shooting from the highway and uncased gun. The subject pleaded guilty and paid total fines and costs of $1,953 including a $250 civil penalty and $350 to the Illinois Conservation Fund.
A CPO was patrolling when he stopped a subject at Fort Massac State Park for riding his motorcycle off the roadway. It was discovered he did not have the proper motorcycle classification on his driver's license. The man was cited for the offense.
A CPO conducted numerous boat and recreational fishing checks at Pyramid Park and other public fishing areas in Perry County. A Campbell Hill boater was cited for no wearable PFDs on his watercraft and two written warnings for other violations.
A CPO received a fishing without permission complaint. Two metro-east fishermen were issued written warnings for fishing on private property without permission.
A CPO assisted with the removal of a nest of king snakes from the Conant Building at Pyramid State Park. The snakes were relocated to private land in Jackson County.
A CPO discovered a turkey baited area in Pulaski County.
A CPO cited two men for fishing without permission on mine property in Perry County.
A CPO cited a driver for failing to secure his 7- and 5-year-old sons in safety seats while riding in a motor vehicle on DNR property.
A CPO charged a Union County subject with unlawful hunting of wild turkeys with the aid of bait (corn). During the field interview, the subject stated he had attached a broadcaster to his ATV and distributed the grain the week before the season started.
A CPO charged a timber company with transporting logs with no proof of ownership/transporting without consent of owner.
A CPO was checking fishermen during the early part of trout season and he discovered two fishermen with four trout but had not bothered to purchase their inland trout stamp. They were issued citations.
A CPO arrested a Kentucky hunter in January for unlawful taking of deer and bowhunting without a non-resident permit and license in Massac County. The man pleaded guilty and paid $1,074 in fines and costs.
