FWOA ELECTIONS
by Ed Spoon, Secretary­Treasurer
Your Association needs YOU! This Spring, we must elect new national officers. Our President, Vice­ President and Secretary­Treasurer positions are term limited, and must be replaced. My four years as Secretary­Treasurer are nearly spent. I hope there are several of you who will run for this important position. Now is an excellent time to be Secretary­Treasurer: Membership rolls are up to date. Over the past two years, inactive, nonpaying members have been dropped from the rolls. This was necessary to reduce administrative workload for me and our newsletter editor.

Our newsletter is now published on a regular, quarterly schedule. Quality and content are at an all time high.

We've reached out to retired U.S. Game Management Agents and Special Agents, bringing them into FWOA as involved, contributing members. We're stronger for having the active involvement of retirees.

We're doing a better job of fostering fraternalism among our far flung membership.

In short, things are in pretty good shape in the Secretary­Treasurer department.

Oh yes---there is plenty left to do! Especially as our Association increases its visibility and becomes more involved in vital wildlife law enforcement issues.

Please give it some serious thought. Our membership deserves energetic, committed leadership. YOU might be the person we're looking for!

Send Address Changes to: Ed Spoon FWOA Secretary/Treasurer
P.O. Box 45614
Madison, WI 53744­5614

DLE'S ``MAINE MAN'' RETIRES
After 28 years of government service, Special Agent Dick Stott retired on January 2, 1999.Dick started his career with the Service in 1966 while in college working summers at Iroquois, NWR, Great Meadows NWR, Monomoy NWR, and Brigantine NWR.

After completing his Masters Degree his first full time assignment was with the Division of Wildlife Research in Hawaii. He then returned to the Division of Refuges and was assigned to Bombay Hook NWR. Dick joined DLE in 1975 with his first post of duty being Indianapolis. He later transferred to Carbondale, IL. In the Spring of 1978 he transferred to Augusta, ME. Portland, ME, became his home in 1980 where he stayed for the remainder of his career.

Dick had the distinction of being one of the few Service agents to have a case heard by the Supreme Court. He was the case agent for the Lacey Act case Maine vs. Taylor which was upheld by the Supreme Court.

Dick's New England colleagues gave him a small send off (at his request) at a restaurant in Boston's North End prior to his departure. Supervisory personnel from the Maine warden service also attended.

Dick plans to get back into scuba diving and continue his traveling to warm and humid islands or, as he would say, ``new places to go, new people to meet, and new things to eat.'' He also has set his sites on taking some Spanish courses, possibly becoming a gym trainer, maybe becoming a dive master, and a tour escort.

Dick will be greatly missed by his fellow agents, Maine Wardens, Canadian officials, and colleagues at U.S. Customs on the Canadian border.
Submitted by Chris Dowd, Boston, MA

CANADIAN FISHERMAN SENTENCED FOR ILLEGAL
HARVESTING OF FISH IN U.S. WATERS OF LAKE ERIE
A Canadian commercial fisherman from Port Stanley, Ontario, was sentenced in U.S. Federal Court in Cleveland, OH, to two years' probation and ordered to pay $15,425 for violating federal wildlife protection laws after illegally harvesting fish from U.S. waters of Lake Erie.

Larry R. Jackson, 60, and L.R. Jackson Fish­ eries, Ltd., were ordered to pay $15,000 to the National Fish &Wildlife Foundation's``Great Lakes Conservation Fund.'' The money will be used by the nonprofit organization specifically to enhance and protect fisheries resources on the Great Lakes.

In addition, Jackson paid $425 in special court assessments. Emily M. Sweeney, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, announced the sentence against Jackson and his corporation, which was the result of an unprecedented international investigative effort by the U.S. Coast Guard, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Ohio Division of Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the federal agency responsible for enforcing federal wildlife laws.

On November 26, and December 29, 1997, Jackson and his corporation, J.R. Jackson Fisheries, Ltd., was observed using gill nets to illegally harvest fish from U.S. waters of Lake Erie in violation of Ohio state law and the federal Lacey Act. On both occasions, a U.S. Coast Guard patrol aircraft observed Jackson's 60 foot fishing vessel, L.R. Jackson, operating within U.S. waters of Lake Erie. The Coast Guard crew also videotaped Jackson's illegal harvesting of fish by gill net from the lake.

On November 2, 1998, Jackson's corporation pled guilty to a felony violation of the Lacey Act, while Jackson himself pled guilty to a misdemeanor violation of the Lacey Act. U.S. laws strictly regulate fish harvests and commercial fishing on U.S. waters of the Great Lakes.

Canadian law, however, encourages commercial fishing in Canadian waters, including the use of gill nets. Gill nets are forbidden in the U.S. waters of Lake Erie. Lake Erie is home to the largest Canadian commercial fishing fleet on the Great Lakes. Because of their large numbers, and the competition for fish in Canadian waters, some fishermen are tempted to venture illegally into U.S. waters in search of a better catch.

``The Coast Guard and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have been working together for the past 10 years in an effort to increase patrols of the great Lakes fisheries and deter this type of illegal activity,'' said Special Agent Daniel LeClair of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

According to LeClair, who led the investigation, the Jackson case is not the first incident of illegal fishing by Canadians on Lake Erie. ``We've cited other Canadian fishermen for illegal harvest of fish on the Lake in the past, but the cases were referred through the civil process,'' LeClair explained, ``This case hopefully sends a clear message that such illegal activity will no longer be tolerated.
Submitted by Daniel LeClair, Sandusky, OH

Retirees should check their lump sum payments to ensure that retirement and thrift contributions have not been withheld. Questions or requests for refunds of improperly withheld contributions should be directed to the Denver Payroll Office.

Credentials for Retired Agents
The Association Directorate is currently looking into the possibility of having retired agent credentials issued to retirees upon their retirement from the Service. More on this as information becomes available.

Commemorative Pistols
The FWOA and SIG Arms, Inc., have tentatively agreed to offer commemorative pistols to Fish & Wildlife Service Special Agents. More details will be forthcoming.

MEMBERS HONORED BY WISCONSIN DNR
Charter members Greg Jackson and Ed Spoon were honored on March 4, 1999, by the Conservation Wardens of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, at a meeting of the South Central Region in Madison.

Their certificates of appreciation read, ``You have provided assistance to Wisconsin Wardens with lengthy and complex natural resources investigations. Your dedication and cooperation, along with the use of your investigative abilities have resulted in successful completion of several investigations. Your distinguished service to the warden force and the citizens of the State of Wisconsin is greatly appreciated. Thank you for your efforts and dedication.''

ARKANSANS PAY $44,244 IN FINES AND RESTITUTION FOR DESTRUCTION OF CATTLE EGRET ROOKERY
During July 1998, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Division of Law Enforcement, and the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission began an investigation into the partial destruction of a Cattle Egret rookery within the city limits of Conway, AR.

The investigation revealed that Harold Halter Crafton, a local developer, and Carlton Burnett, the owner of a land improvement company, directed employees to clear portions of a 34 acre tract of land being prepared for residential development. During the process, about half of the rookery was destroyed. Personnel from the Division of Wildlife Refuges and Ecological Services assisted with the investigation.

The rookery was located in a pine tree plantation and covered 1.27 acres---about .68 acres were cleared by heavy equipment, bulldozers and track hoes. Based on measurements and other data collected at the site, investigators estimated that 4,525 nests were destroyed by the activity. The number of eggs, chicks, and immature birds lost was estimated at $5,000 (a conservative figure).

On July 23, 1998, approximately 300 dead birds, Cattle Egrets and a few Little Blue Herons, were counted within the cleared area; however, it is likely that many more were covered by piles of trees and debris. City animal control personnel and local residents collected and destroyed several hundred dead birds. Hundreds of immature birds were scattered throughout adjacent neighborhoods. A local bird rehabilitator collected and received 470 egrets. Eighty-three birds died and thirty-eight were euthanized. Three hundred and forty-nine egrets were treated and released.

Many volunteers assisted with the effort. Egret carcasses were submitted to the National Fish and Wildlife Forensics Lab for examination. Lab personnel reported the birds died as a result of blunt force trauma (or in this case, death by bulldozer).

On October 9, 1998, a two count Information was filed in U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Arkansas, charging Crafton Burnett and their respective companies---Rush­Hal Development, L.L.C. and Landex Corporation---with violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. On November 16, 1998, Crafton and Burnett appeared before U.S. Magistrate John F. Forster, Jr., for plea and sentencing. Both men entered guilty pleas to violations of 16 USC 703 and 18 USC 2.

A plea agreement was accepted by the court and the men were ordered to pay a total of $44,244 in fines and restitution. Individually, Crafton and Burnett paid fines of $5,000 each, Rush­Hal Development, L.L.C. and Landex Corporation paid fines of $10,000 each. In addition, both men were ordered to pay $14,244 in restitution. Fines were paid to the North American Wetlands Fund and restitution to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
Submitted by Ron Parker, Conway, AR.

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