Wisconsin Cuffs & Collars – October 5th, 2012

District 2 — Cumberland area

Warden Jesse Ashton, of Luck, apprehended two subjects for exceeding their panfish possession limit on Bone Lake. The couple was found to have 47 panfish in the live basket. Ashton located another 239 panfish in their freezer. The fish were seized, and a citation was issued in excess of $1,200 for exceeding their possession limits.
Warden Ashton closed out an illegal deer case from January. The subject was convicted of shooting a deer with a rifle in January during the closed season, was fined $2,152, and lost his licenses for three years.
Warden Jon Hagen, of Spooner, worked with warden Ashton on a PWC complaint on Pipe Lake. They issued one citation for fishing without a license and one warning for a greater than no-wake speed within 200 feet of shore and 100 feet of a pier.
Warden Hagen patrolled Long Lake for boating and fishing activity. While checking fishermen, Hagen contacted a female who gave him the license of another person. After some discussion, the young woman admitted her mistake. A license check showed she did not have a fishing license. Hagen issued the woman a citation for fishing without a license and warned her regarding the borrowing/loaning license and obstructing violations.
Warden Hagen followed up on a hotline complaint about an illegal dam on Potato Lake. Hagen warned the suspect and had him remove the dam.
Wardens Hagen, Swanson, and Fell, along with wildlife biologist Gary Dunsmoor, participated in the classroom portion of the Learn to Hunt bear program at the Indianhead Rifle and Pistol Club in Spooner. All six participants harvested bears.
Warden Sue Miller, of Hayward, worked several complaints regarding boating, fishing, and littering in August that resulted in citations. Miller also assisted warden Heisler with an overbagging case on Lake Chetac that resulted in one citation.
Warden Miller assisted at the Sawyer County youth day event at Summit Lake. There were 101 students who attended.
Warden Chris Spaight, of Grantsburg, received a call about heavy boat traffic on the Yellow River, with a concern about OWI and litter. Spaight and Burnett County recreation deputy Ryan Bybee patrolled the area to reduce these issues.
Warden Spaight assisted the National Park Service with a 911 call on the St. Croix River. Spaight transported NPS staff and two paramedics upriver in Spaight’s DNR jet boat to the injured party. Spaight then transported the injured party and the paramedics back to an ambulance.
Warden Spaight assisted the Burnett County Sheriff’s Department with serving a search warrant at a residence in Burnett County. A stolen ATV was located. Spaight and DNR staff were able to locate the proper information to return it to the rightful owner.
Wardens Spaight, Rosen, Swanson, Dorn, and Tyznik assisted the Burnett County Sheriff’s Department with a search for a missing 3-year-old girl in the Danbury area. The girl was found deceased in a waterway near her home.
Warden Shaun Tyznik, of Amery, answered questions from sport shop and feed store owners about the deer baiting and feeding ban in Polk County. He also answered questions from the public (and students during a hunter safety class) about the ban. Most people said they liked the ban because they believe it will lead to fair chase in hunting.

District 7 — Wisconsin Rapids area

Warden Barry Fetting, of Marshfield, and recruit Ryan Caputo worked ATV enforcement in Clark County. Several warnings were issued for a variety of violations. Citations were issued for loud machines.
Warden Fetting and Caputo responded to a complaint that a homeowner had filled a wetland. The subject said he used the fill to increase his yard space. It is illegal to place fill in a wetland. The case was forwarded to DNR water regulation staff for review. In another case, Fetting received information from a DNR storm water specialist that resulted in enforcement action when a company failed to provide the DNR with Industrial Storm Water Protection Plan information.
Warden Ben Herzfeldt, of Schofield, responded to a complaint regarding a homeowner pumping septic into a small lake. Herzfeldt found that a holding tank was overflowing and running toward a wetland, which eventually drained into a lake after going through several swamps. Herzfeldt took photographs and forwarded the information to Marathon County Zoning officials
Warden Paul Leezer, of Wausau, and recruit Chris Hamerla patrolled the ATV trails in Clark County and took enforcement action for three excessively loud ATVs and one ATV operator who was operating in a careless manner. Numerous warnings were issued.
Warden Leezer issued a citation to a subject for illegally placing bait at a hunting stand location. All baiting and feeding of wildlife is prohibited in Marathon County.
Warden Leezer investigated a call about a subject operating machinery and clearing land in a wetland. The case is under investigation.
Warden Mike Rader, of Wausau, and recruit John Sinclair investigated a case of underage youths operating ATVs on a public road in Marathon County. The parents were found responsible for allowing their children to operate unregistered ATVs, operate illegally on the road, operate without a helmet, underage operation, and failure to stop at a stop sign. Enforcement action was taken.
Wardens Rader and Sinclair were on the Wisconsin River below Mosinee when they contacted three subjects fishing out of a boat. One subject was fishing without a license, and another kept a short bass. The boat owner failed to display a Wisconsin registration number.
Wardens Rader and Sinclair responded to a boat incident on Lake Wausau. They found that a fishing boat had passed between a PWC and the wakeboarder being towed by the PWC, striking the tow rope and wakeboard and narrowly missing the wakeboarder in the water. Enforcement action was taken for operating a boat at an imprudent speed and within 100 feet of a swimmer at greater than no-wake speed.
Wardens Rader and Sinclair attended a trial at Lac du Flambeau tribal court for a tribal member who had been illegally hunting on private land in the ceded territory in Marathon County during the 2011 gun deer season. Rader provided testimony as a witness. The defendant did not appear and was found guilty.
Warden Jon Scharbarth, of Stevens Point, and warden intern Hecht investigated a case in which a subject not licensed to pump septic tanks pumped a tank and illegally disposed of the septage.
Warden Matt Weber, of Necedah, assisted with traffic direction at a forest fire that started along the interstate in the Lyndon Station area.
Warden Bill Miller, of Adams, spent a lot of time on area lakes and trails, resulting in the issuance of 25 citations for assorted fishing, boating, and ATV violations.
Wardens Miller and Wade Romberg, of Friendship, responded to a call about an angler keeping short walleyes. Upon contact, the man had 15 short walleyes in a basket.
Warden Romberg issued citations for ATV, boating, fishing, and littering violations in August. He followed up with two littering cases and issued citations for the violations. In one case, a person dumped an entire burn barrel on private property. In another, a person dumped a clothes hamper filled with household items off a bridge and into a creek. The suspects cleaned up the litter.

District 12 — Green Bay area and Northeast Operations Marine Unit

Warden Andy Lundin, of Green Bay, observed an adult male fishing by himself at the urban pond in Green Bay near the Bay Beach Animal Sanctuary. Upon contact, Lundin found the man was indeed violating the law, as the pond is for kids ages 15 and younger or disabled adults. Lundin explained a citation would be issued, and the man became irate. The man began swearing, raised his fishing pole over his head, and smashed it on the pier, causing it to break into multiple pieces. The man’s wife approached and said the man would be OK. The man then tried to use the excuse that he brought his infant child along, so he was fishing with his kid and should not be cited. Lundin said the infant was not even capable of holding a fishing pole.
Warden Lundin contacted two fishermen along Duck Creek in Howard. Neither person had a fishing or driver’s license. When asked who drove to the docks, the men pointed at each other and said, “He did.” One of the men was found to have an arrest warrant and was taken into custody by Brown County deputies. Citations were issued for the fishing violation.
Warden Robert Stroess, of Manitowoc, investigated a call about a Manitowoc man exceeding his possession limit of panfish. The man had 173 panfish in his freezers, but 50 of those could have been his daughter’s. Therefore, he had 123 panfish (possession limit was 50).
Warden Stroess and a Manitowoc County Sheriff’s Department lieutenant watched an ATVer operate illegally on a road and with no plate. Stroess turned his squad around and attempted a traffic stop, but the ATVer did not stop and drove past, even after Stroess exited his squad and motioned for the ATVer to stop. The ATVer drove into a driveway where it went out of sight behind some trees. Stroess pursued on foot while the lieutenant switched spots and took over the squad with the boat trailer attached. The driver was cited for failing to stop ($439), warned for operation on a road, warned for not displaying registration, and warned for no license plate.

District 13 — Oshkosh area

Wardens Kyle Kosin, of Campbellsport, and Paul Nell, of Horicon, assisted the Horicon Police Department with securing a perimeter around a residence. A suspect was located after he escaped from the back of a squad car during a vehicle search.
Wardens Ben Nadolski, of Waupun, and Nell responded with a surface-drive boat to the Horicon Marsh to assist with a stranded boater and his son. The boat operator had his vessel stuck in the marsh mud. USFWS officer Doug Below and Dodge County Deputy Matoushek also responded with an airboat. Due to a lack of water in the marsh, it was unknown which style of boat would be able to recover the vessel. All three boats and their occupants made it back to the landings safely.
Wardens Al Erickson, of Fond du Lac, and Kosin completed an investigation of a large, 8-point buck shot by a subject in January 2012 with archery equipment after the subject had already shot a large buck in October 2011 with archery equipment. Enforcement action was taken, with both the subject who shot the buck without a license and the subject who loaned his unused archery tag and registered it as his own. The shoulder mount of the illegal buck was seized as evidence.
Wardens Erickson and Kosin completed an investigation of fishing partners who harvested three walleyes under 15 inches from Green Bay and presented them for weigh-in at a tournament in Fond du Lac County. Enforcement action was taken for the illegal-sized fish.
Warden Erickson, while working calls about vandalism and other illegal activity at the Oakfield Ledge State Natural Area, observed two subjects exiting the property an hour and half after the 8 p.m. property closure. Enforcement action was taken.
Warden Ryan Propson, of Appleton, investigated a call about illegal rough fish netting on the Fox River, below the Menasha dam. Upon contacting the angler, Propson learned that the man was using an illegal cast net to catch minnows within 200 feet of the dam. In addition to about 100 minnows, Propson found that the angler had netted and kept a 3-inch bluegill and 3-inch bass, both of which are illegal to take with a net. The size limit for bass is 14 inches. In addition, the angler was harvesting minnows on a prohibited water body (VHS). The angler planned to take the minnows home alive and use them as live bait on another water body.

District 14 — Sheboygan area

No report available.

District 15 — Milwaukee area

No report available.

District 16 — Racine, Kenosha area

Warden Randy Dunkel, of Racine County, assisted the sheriff’s department with a case that started as a boat accident with a missing person. By the time the investigation was complete, the missing person was found sleeping in some near-shore bushes, and no boat accident had happened.
Warden Dunkel responded to a report of a fish kill in the Root River. Dunkel investigated the small fish kill and worked with DNR fisheries personnel to figure out what had happened. Dunkel informed the reporting party that the likely cause of the kill was low oxygen levels in the warm water.
Warden Mac Hannon, of Kenosha, responded to a large gasoline spill in Lake Michigan. A dredging barge had left its fuel pump on after replacing the fuel filter and pumped more than 150 gallons of marine fuel into Lake Michigan. The dredge boat was left unattended with the pump on. Officials from the U.S. Coast Guard arrived on the scene and took over a federal investigation. A cleanup team also arrived.
Warden Mike Hirschboeck, of Racine County, received a call about an upset person who was in possession of an injured juvenile eagle. Hirschboeck contacted the individual and told him he would take possession of the eagle. Hirschboeck took it to a local rehabber.
Warden Kyle Dilley, of Kenosha, made a boat OWI arrest while working the Lake Beulah tie-up group check in Walworth County. An individual was stopped for operating his boat without the required lights. Dilley also assisted deputy warden Gabrielson with a boat OWI arrest.
Warden Dilley received a call about two males at the Camp Lake boat launch. The complainant said the males rode up on their bicycles and asked, “Does the DNR ever check this area?” Dilley found a 19-year-old to be fishing without a license. The 19-year-old initially told Dilley he did not know he needed a license, but later admitted otherwise. As the citation was being issued, the boy’s 12-year-old cousin asked Dilley when he was required to have a license. Before Dilley could respond, the 19-year-old said, “Sixteen,” and then realized he had contradicted what he told Dilley moments earlier.
Warden Juan Gomez, of Elkhorn, assisted with enforcement at Richard Bong State Park. Gomez issued three underage drinking tickets, one disorderly citation, and arrested two individuals in possession of marijuana.
Wardens Gomez and Werner worked the Lake Beulah tie-up in Walworth County. Gomez organized a check in the area for boating safety. He arrested one boater for OWI.

District 17 — Madison area

Wardens Henry Bauman, Nathan Kroeplin and Cara Kamke, of Madison, apprehended and issued citations to a Cambridge suspect for Illegal use of pesticides to poison wildlife.
Warden Bauman issued citations to anglers for fishing without licenses on the Yahara River in Madison and Dunkirk dam in Dunkirk. He also investigated calls about illegal wetland filling in Marshall and Oregon, and investigated a complaint of illegal application of herbicides near Deerfield.
Warden Dieckhoff and intern Jalen Riddle were working on the Sugar River in Green County when they came upon a subject who had admitted to taking 30 clams. The man was cited due to the fact there is no open season for clams in any inland waters. The clams were released.
Warden Dieckhoff and intern Riddle had assisted a group of anglers load their boat at the Mount Hope Road landing. The anglers were found to have camped overnight on the river, on what they believed was state land. Further investigation revealed the subjects had a cooler full of alcohol and were not of legal age. The subjects also were found to have littered where they camped on private land just downstream of the boat landing. The subjects were cited for underage possession and littering.
Warden Ryan Ellifson, of Jefferson, assisted the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department with the search for a missing 7-year-old girl who had wandered off while playing with the dogs of a family friend. Sgt. Rue, of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, asked Ellifson to search from an airplane with deputies and Watertown airport staff. The girl was found by ground searchers in a wetland area more than a mile away from where she was reported missing. The girl had been missing for more than three hours before being found. She was muddy and had small cuts on her arms and legs from vegetation. She was not seriously harmed, and she was happy to be reunited with her family.
Warden Ellifson participated in the “Law Enforcement, Fire and Rescue Night Out” in Lake Mills. Ellifson brought a boat for display, handed out boating safety wrist bands to kids, and explained the duties of conservation wardens.
Wardens Nathan Kroeplin, Cara Kamke, Mike Dieckhoff, and Henry Bauman, along with deputy wardens Samantha Koscher and Kevin Christorf worked an enforcement effort at the Mazomanie Beach. They issued 17 citations for violations relating to disorderly conduct, driving without a license, and drug-related offenses.
Warden Boyd Richter, of Janesville, investigated a complaint concerning a subject harvesting ginseng during the closed season in Green County. Richter and deputy warden Jason Rice, of Madison, contacted the suspect, who admitted to digging one ginseng plant on the property on which he did not have permission to be. He claimed he had replanted the ginseng because it had a small root. The suspect admitted he would have kept the root if it was bigger and knew the ginseng season did not open for another week. The suspect also admitted to buying ginseng from other harvesters and reselling it in 2011, while not having a ginseng buyer’s license. Citations were issued.
Warden Richter and deputy warden Rice checked fishermen on Storr’s Lake and found a subject in possession of a 24-inch northern pike (size limit is 26 inches). One citation was issued for the violation.
Warden Richter and deputy warden Dave Horton, of Madison, worked boating and fishing enforcement on Storr’s Lake. Several subjects in one boat had violations and were cited for fishing without a license and failing to provide personal floatation devices.
Warden Richter investigated a call about a fish kill on Mud Lake near Milton. Richter found several hundred crappies, bluegills, perch, largemouth bass, and other species dead on the shoreline. Oxygen level fluctuations on the lake after a rain event are believed to be a likely culprit.

District 18 — Poynette area

Warden John Buss, of Sauk City, received a call from an off-duty Sauk County deputy about a burning complaint. The suspect was burning furniture and tires. Environmental staff is following up on the complaint.
Warden Buss patrolled waterways and checked anglers in August. He issued citations for unattended lines and fishing without licenses.
Warden Paul Nadolski, of Portage, assisted DNR fire control with several wildfires in August. He also issued a citation for illegal septic disposal in Columbia County.
Warden Nadolski responded to several calls regarding illegal wetland digging and filling in Columbia County, and issued citations for ATV operation on sandbars on the Wisconsin River.
Warden Nadolski responded to several complaints about snakes getting into people’s houses. All snakes were removed and released to a more suitable habitat.
Warden Paul Nell, of Horicon, followed up on a case of a convicted felon who had killed two deer illegally during the gun deer seasons. The man had retrieved car-killed deer in the CWD zone and registered them as gun kills to obtain earn-a-buck stickers to use at a later time. Citations were issued.
Warden Michael Green, of Wisconsin Dells, assisted Mirror Lake State park ranger Patrick Carlson with a large dumping complaint on park property. An individual was found to be driving a vehicle, with a second individual riding on a trailer, and dumping items in the ditch. Citations are forthcoming.

District 19 — Dodgeville area

Warden Dave Youngquist, of Spring Green, obtained permission for a volunteer to use a tracked skid-steer on a sandbar to remove hazardous steel from the Wisconsin River in front of the Mazomanie beach. The girders were left behind by a power company more than 30 years ago and had been buried on an island. The island has shifted downstream and the steel now sticks out of the water. Fisheries staff also assisted with its larger equipment.
Warden Stone, of Fennimore, was involved in several arrests associated with possession of THC and drug paraphernalia and misdemeanor warrants, which were turned over to the sheriff’s department.