Will We Allow Salaries That Qualify Law Enforcement Officers to Receive Food Stamps?

Last March, I wrote a piece entitled “What is a NC Wildlife Officer Worth.”  That question came to mind in a broader context this week as I read that NC State Troopers have entered into a class-action lawsuit over pay issues.  The class-action suit is being pursued after Alamance County Superior Court Judge Michael O'Foghludha recently dismissed a lawsuit over broken promises regarding annual pay raises for the troopers.  Among the many points made by troopers in filing the class-action suit is that many of their officers salaries are so low that they qualify for food stamps.

The salary concerns of law enforcement officers in North Carolina can be even more pronounced on the local level.  The University of North Carolina’s School of Government has published a report that list the salaries of sheriff department employees across the state. In many of the more economically distressed counties, sheriff’s deputies are hired at a rate of $25,000 to $29,000 per year.  Pamilco County’s starting salary is only $22,853.  That's roughly $11.00 per hour.

These disparities in pay, along with stagnant salary progressions, has led to officers bouncing from one agency to another in search of higher pay.  Officers with the Winston Salem Police Department recently requested pay raises, in part, to aid with officer retention.

The result of this movement from agency to agency is that the lowest paying departments continually see many of their best and brightest officers take their knowledge, skills and abilities to other agencies.  Those officers that exercise the best judgment, due to experience and common sense, are in demand.  Social scientists refer to this phenomena as “human capital flight.” It is more commonly called “brain drain.”

This human capital flight is occurring at an increased rate with the NC Wildlife Resources Commission’s Division of Law Enforcement.  Wildlife officers with 5-7 years of experience have reached a point in their careers where they are considered seasoned officers and are assuming leadership roles.  They are serving as training officers for new recruits and are eligible for promotion to first-line supervisor.  Yet, these officers have had minimal pay increases since they were hired.

They are also attracting the attention of other departments.

Virtually any wildlife officer with less than ten years of experience can find another law enforcement job tomorrow that pays more money.  One agency has hired three wildlife officers.  Staff from that department has jokingly told NCWRC staff, “Y’all keep training them and we’ll keep hiring them.” 

For years the NCWRC could count on the vast number of people who want to work outdoors to fill the roster and keep it full.  Wildlife officers work in their chosen field because they believe in the mission.  It is a job with tremendous personnel freedom.  But, that formula may not keep ranks filled in the future.

The NCWRC is currently experimenting with offering a shortened recruit school for candidates who have already successfully passed basic law enforcement training.  It was thought that this would draw experienced officers who are serving in other departments.  After the first round of the process, there were only 18 applicants who would receive interviews.   While the NCWRC has officers leaving for other agencies, not many officers from other departments are willing to accept a wildlife job, in large part due to salary issues.

So, is it all purely a matter of salary?  That is doubtful.  The current generation of workers change jobs much more frequently than those of the past.  Add a growing societal disconnect with nature and the likelihood of retaining wildlife officers lessens further. Yet, salary is definite concern.  As salaries have remained basically flat over the past years, the thresholds for receiving public assistance have risen.  It is a truly depressing thought that law enforcement officers, regardless of uniform, qualify for food stamps.  But that is exactly what is happening.

We ask much from our law enforcement officers.  There is an expectation for officers to make accurate, split second decisions concerning the use of force.  Officers are expected to use sound judgment in decision-making that reflects a wide array of possible actions.  There is an almost impossible expectation of officers having the ability to transition from a school or civic presentation and then respond a Paris style attack and then make the transition back.

It begs the question of how much we truly do value our officers.  Surely we don’t ask all that we ask and expect the officers to do it on a salary that qualifies them for food stamps.

25 Signs You Were a Game Warden's Kid

1.     You have a photos, okay multiple photos, of you and your parent with a fawn deer.

2.     Many of your friends’ stories began with, “Now don’t tell your parent this, but…”

3.     As a kid, you always had to wear a PFD when you were around water.

4.     You know what “PFD” stands for.

5.     You took a hunter safety class when you were in elementary school and knew more correct answers than the adults in the class.

6.     On your calendar, seasons are identified by opening days.

7.     Deer jerky was an afternoon school snack.

8.     You can build a box trap for rabbits.

9.     You had a fishing trip with your parent that turned into a stake out.

10.  You only hunted with other game wardens.

11.  Your parent brought home a cap full of wild grapes, plums, or blackberries

12.  Your parent showed up at sporting events in uniform – on their meal break – and answered questions from the other parents.

13.  When you see a nice buck in a field, your first thought is, “Nice decoy.”

14.  You feel comfortable around guns.  You feel most comfortable around a lot of guns.

15.  Your parent brought a boat to your school’s career day.

16.  You still consider “Headquarters,” “The Office,” or “The Capital” as the source of most of life's problems.

17.  You consider hunting shows highly edited and mostly fake.

18.  You know the difference in White Oak and Red Oak acorns.

19.  In your wardrobe, camouflage is still considered a color.

20.  You refer to locations by county instead of town.

21.  Your parent knew everyone that was shopping in the Wal-Mart fishing section.

22.  People in the fishing section now ask you how your parent is doing.

23.  You have a shoulder patch that reminds you of your parent.

24.  You were asked more times that you can count, “Is your parent the game warden?”

25.  You remember being proud to answer, “Yes he/she is.”

The Mystery of Chicken Seeds

As a parent, I did a lot of things wrong.  I worked more than was necessary and missed more church events and ball games than I would like to admit.  But, I also got a few things right.  And occasionally, I hit it out of the park.

One of those right ideas was of instilling an entrepreneurial spirit in my kids.  Staring into the tub of chicks at Tractor Supply late one spring, flanked by Elizabeth and John, it occurred to me that having the kids raise chicks into laying hens, tend to them chicks daily and then buying eggs from the kids would be the perfect business model.  So, the clerk boxed up a half dozen Rhode Island Red chicks and we headed home.

I built a 6x6 feet square pen that could be moved around the backyard.  I’m not sure that the term pastured poultry had been coined yet and technically we were in the backyard, but I like to think of ourselves as visionaries of future self-sufficient agricultural practices.

That summer the chicks matured and by the following spring we were anticipating fresh eggs.  As the weather warmed, the chickens libido also kicked into overdrive.  Ever observant of the natural world, John, who was five or six at the time asked a question one night at the dinner table.

www.heritagepullets.com

“Daddy, why does Big Red (the rooster) jump on the Little Red Hen’s back?’

I suddenly realized that I had actually hit the paternal lottery.  Not only was I creating entrepreneurs and a sense of responsibility, I now had a segway to the birds and bees via roosters and hens.

“Well John,” I began in my best patriarchal tone, “When Big Red jumps on the Little Red Hen he is planting a seed in her that fertilizes the eggs so they can hatch into chicks.”

John nodded his head and simply said, “Oh.”

I felt pretty good.  Actually, I felt real good.  Like, “I should write a parenting book” good.

After a couple of minutes of thought, John added, “But Daddy, I don’t think Big Red hits it every time.”

It took me a couple of moments to process what he said.  I saw the title of the parenting book changing to “Big Red Strikes Out and other Tales of Failed Livestock Husbandry” (this was before the commercials of couples watching the sun set from claw-foot tubs, but I'm sure there is some chicken equivalent).  As much as I wanted to bail on the conversation, his observation peaked my curiosity.

“Why do you think Big Red misses sometimes?”

“Cause I found some chicken seeds in the yard.”

Now he had me.  My bluff was called.

“You found chicken seeds?”

“Yep, chicken seeds.”

“Exactly what do they look like?”

“They are hard and white.”  He held his fingers about a quarter inch apart and added, “And about this big.  Kind of like cucumber seeds.”

As my mind reeled and I wondered if I had stepped on the chickens seed with my bare feet because that would be kind of gross, Elizabeth, two years John’s elder, solved the mystery.

“John,” she said, “Those aren’t chicken seeds."  She pointed her fork in John's direction to emphasize her epiphany.  "Those are bits of oyster shells.  Right Daddy?”

It struck me that some of the oyster shells we were feeding them to combat egg eating had been kicked through the wire into the yard.  They looked seed-like so it was an easy mistake to make.  

“You don’t know everything Elizabeth,” John protested, now pointing his fork at her.  “Daddy, tell her those are chicken seeds.”

"Well, I think she is right John.  Those may look like chicken seeds, but I’m pretty sure they are oyster shells.”

I suddenly realized I was discussing chicken seeds as though I knew exactly what they looked like.

As Elizabeth looked content with her assessment, John deflated just a bit.  Then his expression changed.  I saw another question brewing.

“Okay maybe those are oyster shells.  But tell me this Daddy, how does Big Red actually plant the chicken seeds?

I thought for a moment and decided to throw down the parental trump card.

“That’s enough about chickens.  Eat your supper.”

So the seed metaphor was less than perfect.  As always seems to be the case, it seemed like a good idea at the time.  I'm really glad that I steered away from tadpoles...

The Confederate Battle Flag - My Uncomfortably, Comfortable Position

Old Cleveland County, NC Courthouse
from www.ncmomuments.ncdcr.gov

Sometime during the first week of September, 1862, my great-great grandfather Caveny’s three brothers crossed the Potomac River as part of the Army of Northern Virginia’s Maryland Campaign.  Over the next days as soldiers in the 17^th South Carolina Infantry Regiment, they fought in a mountain gap at the Battle of South Mountain and then fell back to a position near the small town of Sharpsburg.  On September 17^th, they fought in the Battle of Antietam.  One brother was killed and one was seriously injured.  He died days later as a prisoner of war.  Only one of the three came home.

The next year, my great, great, great grandfather Jolley followed General Lee north during the Gettysburg Campaign with the 28th North Carolina Regiment.  Grandpa Jolley survived his wounds at Gettysburg but his brother was killed.  Of his four brothers who fought in the war, two were killed in action and one died of other causes. 

I understand and appreciate my Southern heritage.

For those of us in the rural south, the Civil War is never far from conscious thought.  At virtually every old courthouse, a lone Confederate soldier stands atop a slab of stone as if waiting for the Yankees to return.  Here in western North Carolina, highway markers trace Stoneman's Raid from one small town to another.  And of course there is the flag.

Wilkesboro, NC

The shooting of nine African-American church members at a Charleston, SC Bible study by a white man has revived calls to remove the Confederate Battle Flag from the South Carolina State House grounds.  There seems to be momentum for that outcome with a vote scheduled for next week.  NASCAR has even weighed in asking fans not to fly the flag at NASCAR events.

www.thestate.com

“Heritage not hate” is the rallying cry for flag supporters.  We complain that the KKK and other white supremacist groups have hijacked our flag and are using it for evil purposes.  Yet, we seem to conveniently forget that the flag was raised over the South Carolina State House in 1962 in response to the federal government’s push to end segregation. 

We argue that the Civil War (or is it War of Northern Aggression?) wasn’t about slavery at all but that it was about states’ rights.  So, by logical extension, the flag represents states’ rights.  For those politically right of center, anything that challenges the federal government is a good thing. And the further we move to the right, the more gun rights, social reform, and now the flag issue become intertwined. 

What if we are wrong?

What if the Civil War actually was about slavery for those in the South?  What if those aristocratic, low country rice and cotton plantation owners knew that their empires would fall apart without slave labor?  What if those same rich farmers knew they could never get my subsistence farmer, ancestors to buy into fighting to maintain slavery?  What if they knew they had to spin the truth as “states rights” to get them to march across an open field at Gettysburg against Union troops firmly anchored behind a stone wall?

Fodder for endless and spirited discussions.

The biggest “what if” is whether the Confederate Battle flag symbolizes hatred and a history of oppression to a large portion of our community.

I must admit that when I see the flag publicly displayed these days I don’t think about my heritage – at least not in a romantic, chivalrous sense.  Now I see someone who is thumbing their nose at society and authority – the same sentiment that hoisted the flag over the SC State House in 1962.  I hear a nonverbal “fuck you” spoken loudly in mixed, unfamiliar company because it is our right to speak freely as we chose regardless of who we offend.  I think about my folks dying because some slave owner took advantage of my people’s Scots-Irish tendency to buck authority.

None of that leaves me feeling warm and fuzzy.

In all fairness, my opinions are just opinions.  For Christians, we are fortunate to have scripture to help us with these thorny issues.

How should we interact with the government, especially one with whom we disagree?

“Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.” Romans 13:1-2

Why should I have to sacrifice something that means so much to me?

“If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire. If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out and throw it from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be cast into the fiery hell.”  Matthew 18:8-9

But what about my rights?  Am I responsible for how someone (mis)perceives my actions or cultural symbols?

“But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.” 1 Corinthian 8:9

“All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify. Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor.”

1 Corinthians 10:23-24

In his sermon on 4 Biblical Insights for Christians on the Events in Charleston, SC, Fellowship Raleigh Church Pastor Matt Schoolfield challenges us to be more focused on making a difference than on making a point.  Wise words.

I have come to realize that there is rarely change without loss.  We have to give up something to initiate change - to make a difference. 

As a true son of the south, I feel uncomfortably comfortable acknowledging that it’s time to fold up the flag and put it away.  It's time.

Small Business of the Week - Bullhead Bear Farms

When I was a big kid, maybe 12 or 13 years old, I was struck by an entrepreneurial spirit.  I had had a taste of real work – picking okra for a truck farmer and push-mowing grass.  Facing a long row of okra with a peck basket was not an attractive career path.  I knew there were easier ways to earn money.  So, I decided to go into the possum business. 

My friend and I lured three of four possums into box traps with open cans of sardines.  We built a rather large cage of questionable durability and paired the possums off to do what possums do.  These were going to be our foundation stock – the basis for our possum empire.

I’m not sure who said, “Find a job you enjoy and you will never work a day of your life,” but I pretty sure he was a possum farmer.  No more grass-stained Chuck Taylors or prickly okra stalks for me.  Instead, I envisioned the inspiring words: “That’s a fine looking possum young man – How much do you want for him?”  It all begins with a dream.

But, like most budding business owners, we focused on the aspects we enjoyed most – catching and raising the critters.  We never gave much thought to the vitality of the possum market which surprisingly was nil.

Nowadays I am much older and wiser.  And since I am semi-retired, I have time for a new animal husbandry venture that I’m sure will be profitable.

My idea was generated by all this talk about deer.  There is a move to transfer captive deer to the oversight of the NC Department of Agriculture and away from the NC Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC).  Determined not to make the possum error again, I have been studying this bill’s progress.

First, semantics or word choice are important.  Those wanting to raise deer refer to it as “deer farming.”  One bill sponsor, Senator Brent Jackson, is quoted as saying, “Logically, it just makes more sense to have a livestock program placed in the same department as all the other livestock programs.”  The NCWRC and other conservationists prefer the term, “captive cervids.”  This seems to communicate that these deer are public trust resources that belong to the people as a whole and not a group of 37 individuals.  And of course “cervid” sounds much too scientific.  I’m sticking with “farming.”

Next, we need some folks who are okay with waffling.  In 2010, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler said in an official press release, "Bambi is a pest."  Now Commissioner Troxler says, "It makes perfect sense" to move the oversight of captive deer to his department.  I like a man who is willing to change positions.  We will need more folks like that in our camp.

The deer farmers point to this as a growing agricultural enterprise.  I like that a lot.  “Economic development” and "job creation” are a hot topics.  Who can argue against putting money in people’s pockets?  Deer steaks, deer urine, big racked bucks for canned hunts – these guys have it figured out.  I hear there is even a budding market for deer semen (now there is a job to fluff your resume).  It all sounds as lucrative as ostrich farming.

We also need politicians willing to deal with the hard issues.  Representative Roger West’s possum bill has paved the way for abolishing wildlife laws when it is beneficial for us small business owners.  In spite of what some may say, we don’t need industry in western North Carolina.  We need principled men who are willing to expend their political capital to give us a week of unregulated access to possums.  Fingers crossed, but I hope those principles apply to other wild animals in the future.

So now for my big reveal.  If this deer bill passes it seems logical that other animals should follow (cue Ty Pennington and shouts of “move that bus”).  How does this sound? – Bullhead Bear Farm.  That’s right - I’m farming bears!  I plan to grow them out and slaughter them like beef cattle.  There is a strong Asian market for gall bladders and I know the tourists and mountain transplants will buy rugs and mounts.  Gosh, I bet ever piece can be sold.  I may even get back into possums.

But first, we have to get this current bill pushed through the NC General Assembly.  Then I can start building my bear fence. 

I wonder if there is market for squirrels.

Stripping the NCWRC

It seems that conservation in every form is under attack by legislation.  I suppose the mentality is that environmental laws are bad for economic development.  After all, the laws designed to protect our air, water, and forests must have a negative impact to those developers seeking to drain wetlands, emit pollutants in the air, and allow sediment to wash into our streams. 

Then there are all those pesky varmints.  The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission is working to conserve those critters like it is some kind of statutory mandate.  Wait, there actually is such a statute. 

Ding Darling
www.dingdarling.org

Back in the 1940s, there was a movement across the country to take conservation programs to the next level.  Folks like Ding Darling were concerned that the great restoration efforts begun by Theodore Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot, and George Bird Grinnell were becoming too political and that conservation would suffer because of this intervention.  Building on a national model, the North Carolina Wildlife Federation was instrumental in initiating legislation that led to the creation of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) in 1947.

Darling's biography describes his frustration with petty political interference, and how he hoped that conservation could somehow be kept from the negotiated world of politics.  It was felt that creating a separate, autonomous agency would help keep politics from influencing the biological management of wildlife resources.  The NCWRC has founded on this principle of making decisions based on what was best for the resources.

Of course, politics have always been a part of any wildlife agency.  To think otherwise would be ludicrous and naive.  The NCWRC is no different.  The commissioners are political appointees.  Both state and local politicians often ask and receive favors that benefit their constituents. 

The current legislative body in North Carolina seems intent on breaking down the NCWRC stone by stone.  HB 574 was passed by the House and awaits action by the Senate.  The bill will remove all rules concerning opossums between December 29 and January 2 each year.  This action hopes to ensure that the Possum Drop can be conducted for a handful of folks in a crossroads community in Clay County.  It's not possums that are at stake - it the fundamental shift in how the General Assembly interferes with conservation efforts.

Then HB 760, the Regulatory Reform Act, had language inserted that would have stripped wildlife officers of their inspection authority.  This authority is unique to conservation officers across the country.  It allows them to temporarily stop people engaged in wildlife related activities to determine if they possess the required licenses and other equipment.  A later iteration removed the verbiage concerning inspection authority, but left language that states:

“Except as authorized by G.S. 113-137, nothing in this section gives an inspector, protector, or other law enforcement officer the authority to inspect weapons, equipment, fish, or wildlife in the absence of a person in apparent control of the item to be inspected."

Huh???

One has to wonder what the drafters of that language really want to address.  Are wildlife officers pilfering through hunters’ trucks while the hunters are in the woods?  That is already illegal.  Or maybe it is to keep those “jack booted thugs” from going into a hunter’s house to inspect his freezer without a warrant or permission.  It couldn’t be that – those actions are also illegal.  Could we be trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist?

What is easily discernible is the effect of such a law.  A wildlife officer could no longer check a trap that she suspected of being illegally set unless the trapper was present.  Or a marine patrol officer could no longer check for identification of nets until the fisherman showed up.  Many other situations come to mind where the conservation of wildlife resources, the NCWRC’s and Division of Marine Fisheries' mandate, would be adversely affected.

I suppose we could speculate on any number of reasons that one legislator has a beef with the NCWRC.  What isn’t questionable is the impact this legislator is having on an agency with a rich history of stewardship of the state’s wildlife resources.  

Warden Tales: The Great Deception

It wasn't long into my first assignment as a wildlife officer in western North Carolina that I realized that the government and its officials weren't held in high esteem.  This was in 1985 - long before the anti-government gained momentum on a national scale.  Many still talked of “the government taking our land” to form the Great Smoky Mountain National Park (while some land was taken through eminent domain, many were also compensated for their land).   The Trail of Tears wasn't some distant event from history - the Tsali access area kept history current.  And the US Forest Service was widely criticized for everything from cutting too many trees, not cutting enough trees, to locking up roads to inhibit access to “our land” (it was pointed out more than once that the “US” in the Forest Service name also spelled "us" – "that means the land is ours").

Sandwiched in with the park service and forest service, game wardens didn’t stand a chance.  Our sergeant warned us away from any socializing with anyone that hunted or fished.  “They will screw you over,” he warned.  Since everyone in the county seemed to hunt and fish that pretty much eliminated the prospect of finding a friend.

But, that first fall I found one family that was different.  They spoke in support of wildlife management and understood the benefits of successional forests.  I saw them often on the lake and up and down the trout streams.  They worked with the fishing club to establish brush piles for fish on the lake.  They were one of the few parties of bear hunters that didn’t go silent when we drove up.  Even the ole sarge admitted they were pretty good guys.

I had worked nearly a year when I saw the dad of this group and one of his grown sons out on the lake.  It was late spring and the smallmouth bass were turned on – everyone was catching them.  I was working from boat to boat when I spied my friends.  I had seen their licenses and safety equipment before, so I just pulled alongside to say hello. 

Nothing seemed abnormal.  They asked if I had seen many fish and what the other anglers were using to catch fish.  After several minutes I asked, “How ‘bout ya’ll? Are you catching anything?”  There was a moment of silence that was a bit uncomfortable for us all.

The daddy nodded to the livewell and said, “We’ve caught a few.”

I opened the lid and quickly assessed there were more than two limits.  A quick count aloud confirmed they were four or five fish over.

I figured there had to be a really good explanation.  Maybe one of the other brothers had been with them and they had just dropped him off.  Maybe they just lost count.  I couldn’t imagine them intentionally breaking the law.  They were my friends – almost to the buddy stage.  I guess the daddy could see the gears turning as I tried to make sense out of the situation.  He finally broke what seemed like a year of silence.

“I know it looks bad for us, but we didn’t intend on keeping ‘em.”

I guess I looked even more puzzled.

“You know how the fishing is pretty poor on the other side of the lake?”

I nodded.  Everyone knew that.

“Well, we are stocking these fish over there.”

As I write it now that explanation seems utterly ridiculous.  But at the moment, as my mind reeled, it sort of, in a weird way, made sense.  They had, after all, helped with all manners of restoration work to improve fish habitat.  They had given me violation reports on poachers.  They had even made me feel welcome in a county where there is no red carpet welcoming government officials.  I considered them friends.  Surely, I thought, they wouldn’t violate the law and then lie to me.

“This looks bad,” I offered more weakly than I liked.  “But, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt.”  I pulled away uncertain of what just happened.

A few weeks later the uncertainty grew into clarity when an officer from the neighboring county called and told me he had charged the father/son duo.  He caught them pulling off the lake with a livewell of bass that once again exceeded the creel limit.  I guess they were shooting for genetic diversity in their “stocking.”

That episode swung me hard in the other direction.  I never really trusted anyone after that incident.  Years later that mindset led me to cite a mom out fishing with her family on Mother’s Day for not having a license – she should have known better and if she didn’t, well she did after “holding one.”  Or the time I thumbed through a Bible while searching a car, thinking what a perfect place that would be to hide marijuana.

I recall talking with an administrator who had received a compliant about a boating check about the complexity of a wildlife officer’s job.  I talked him through a routine boat check step by step beginning with the approach – 10 or more things that were taking place almost simultaneously.  I said, “And all the while, you have to wonder, is this guy going to try and kill me.”  He laughed and said, “Seriously, how often do you think that.”  I explained that survival dictated that every encounter be viewed that way because as sure as an officer drops their guard, the worse may happen.  Keep your head down literally or figuratively you'll never see it coming. 

Maybe it won’t be a life or death encounter.  Maybe the officer will roll up on their friend who feeds the officer a BS story that the officer believes and leaves him feeling foolish for the rest of his life.

************************************************************************

For an interesting look at the different types of wildlife officers, I suggest this paper by Craig J. Forsyth. 

What is a NC Wildlife Officer Worth?

In 1984, I recall sitting in a classroom at the Institute of Government in Chapel Hill, NC.  I was surrounding by classmates all anxious to become wildlife officers.  At some point during those first couple of days Major Ray Johnson came in and asked us a question.

“Is there anyone here who wants to be a state trooper?  If you do, let me know.  I have contacts over there and can probably get you hired if that is what you want.”

No one spoke a word.

“If you don’t want to be troopers, then I don’t expect to hear any comparisons to troopers.”

Major Johnson went on to tell us that we shouldn’t be concerned about what troopers are paid because in his experience, when troopers are taken care of, wildlife officers are as well. 

Major Ray Johnson (L) presents a plaque to the parents of slain wildlife officer Neal Mayes
from Wildlife in North Carolina 1984

Governor Pat McCrory’s proposed budget for 2015-2017 brings that into question.  In that budget, he proposes that 700 NC State Highway Patrol troopers who are not at top pay have their 5% step raises reinstated.  NCSHP had those steps in place for many years, but the steps were eliminated during the recent economic downturn.  The proposed budget also includes requests for raises for teachers and correctional officers.  As was pointed out in a recent article, the governor seems to be moving away from across the board pay increases for state employees and instead targeting specific groups.

Page 174 of Gov. McCrory's proposed budget

In all fairness, both the NCSHP and the Division of Adult Corrections have experienced substantial cuts in recent years.  Several prisons have closed and numerous correctional officers lost their jobs.  This is not about devaluing what troopers or correctional officers do or their worth to the citizens of North Carolina.  But, the governor’s budget does bring into question how much he values other state employees in general and specifically other state law enforcement officers.

During the recent declared state of emergency situations, wildlife officers worked around the clock ensuring that no motorists were stranded and forced to spend the night in their vehicles.  Every day, there are wildlife officers providing “law enforcement off the payment,” patrolling our state’s woodlands and waterways.  While their primary duties are to enforce the hunting, fishing, trapping and boating laws, their presence in these areas provides safety and security to those who enjoy quality of life activities such hiking, walking their dogs, canoeing, and a multitude of other non-hunting and fishing activities.

from www.wnct.com

The disparities between various staff of the NCSHP and other state law enforcement officers, including wildlife officers, is often a point of contention.  A comparison of various ranks through the News and Observer data base reveals how wide those differences can be.  The proposed step increases will only widen that gap.

So, what can be done?  The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) has struggled to hold onto funding since 2008.  Appropriated funds have decreased by 50% during that period.  The NCWRC can’t request increases – the commission is trying to hold onto what they have.  The Division of Law Enforcement (DLE) is just one division within the NCWRC.  DLE can’t request increases without alienating the rest of the commsission.

The best of course of action is for citizens to make their legislators aware of the value of wildlife officers and their desire to see them compensated at the same rate as NC State Highway Patrol troopers.  Each have a different, but valuable role in maintaining a safe environment for the citizens of North Carolina.  In a recent news conference, both Governor McCrory and Donald van der Vaart, secretary of the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, discussed the value of state parks and our wild places to North Carolina's economic recovery.  Specifically, Governor McCrory told the group that “we need to develop a strategy for the future” to manage these areas.  That strategy should include adequate compensation for the services wildlife officers provide to everyone in North Carolina.

What can we do?  The contact information for your legislative members can be found at this site.  An email can express your opinion.  A phone call carries much weight.  Oddly enough the most effective communication to your legislator is a handwritten note or letter.

Major Johnson was a great story and joke teller.  I recall one he told was from the days when troopers and wildlife officers both trained there at the Institute.  The story goes that a trooper and wildlife officer both finished their business in the restroom and the wildlife officer failed to wash his hands.  As the trooper washed his hands he asked the wildlife officer,

“Don’t they teach you in wildlife school to wash your hands after you piss?”

As the wildlife officer walked through the door, he answered over his shoulder, “Nah, they teach us not to piss on our hands.”

In this case, wildlife officers can’t “dirty their hands” by making these contacts.  Friends and supporters have to take this step for the officers.

My Name is Canis Rufus and I'm a Recovering Red Wolf - "Hello Canis"

After 30 years as a wildlife officer, I came to believe that there were few things that stirred people up more than wildlife/human interactions.  One person’s “beautiful example of creation” is another’s “pest.”  One enjoys seeing raccoons on their back porch while another stuffs their children under the bed out fear of rabid ‘coon attacks.  When a yearling male bear wanders through a Piedmont town, news crews are scrambled and local schools go on lockdown.  In Asheville, the residents there follow the urban bear study on Facebook.

As is the case with most controversial topics, an individual’s position is often influenced by their proximity to the source of contention.  For example, I think it is cool that the gray wolf population is spreading throughout the western states.  However, I live 2500 miles away and don’t have the concerns some ranchers have for the predation of cattle.  It’s easy for me to support a critter that’s not in my backyard.  The truth is I don’t want wolves in my woods.

Not a Coyote
www.fws.org

Those same conflicting perceptions are in play in eastern North Carolina.  In 1987, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) began an experimental reintroduction of red wolves.   Prior to that date, red wolves, extinct in the wild, only existed in captivity.  These captive animals had suspect genetics and were likely interbred with coyotes.  The original plan called for the release of 35-50 animals on 144,000 acres of National Wildlife Refuge.  The current population is in the neighborhood of 100 wolves that range over 1.7 million acres, much of it privately owned.

The geographical expansion of the population has created a multitude of issues for the USFWS.  Compounding the management of red wolves is the exponential rise in the coyote population in this region.  And local farmers feel they have been misled over the past 25+ years.

The USFWS requested the Wildlife Management Institute conduct an independent review of the red wolf recovery program.  The 2014 study identified numerous problems with the program as it is currently structured.  Based in part on the findings of this report, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) has requested the program cease.

So now the “fun” begins.

Emotions run high on each side of the issue.  A recent Raleigh News and Observer editorial blasted the NCWRC for shirking its duties by “abandoning the red wolf.”  Local residents have taken advantage of various forums accusing the NCWRC of abandoning its obligations to landowners, farmers and hunters (due to the court ordered moratorium on coyote hunting).

At the core of the controversy, is the modern definition of conservation.  In the North American Wildlife Conservation Model one of the major management principles is that decisions will be based on “sound science.”  Traditionally, this is considered to be biological science.

Dr. David Cobb, chief of the NCWRC’s Division of Wildlife Management, asserts that “sound science” is more than biology.  In what he describes as the “Arc of Conservation,” social, political, and economic science also come into play in modern wildlife conservation.  To many purists, the inclusion of these others sciences is akin to blasphemy.

As we see with many other current events, polarized “conservation” groups often square off in philosophical battles that leave those entrusted with management of public trust resources caught squarely in the middle.  In this case, these groups, politicians, landowners, and a host of other wolf haters or lovers have placed the NCWRC in a spot where it is nearly impossible to win.