Idaho Fish and Game out of control

[topper]

A few weeks back I was pulled over by a fish and game officer without probable cause. I wasn't hunting, I had no weapons. They never did tell me why they pulled me over, but they did get my friens and I out of the truck and do a full search without my permission or a warrent. I had nothing to hide, but I did feel some personal invasion. After tearing through all of my belongings and finding nothing. They started asking about drugs and alchohol...are you serious? are you that power hungry and desperate?

After two F&G officers and a state police officer treated me my friends, and my truck like crap, a ranking F&G officer explained that I had done nothing and let me go.

The next morning when we drove by the scene of the search, we noticed half of my hunting cloths on the ground. Talk about respect.

One last point. Do they really need 20+ officers at a check station? I guess that's our ever increasing tag fees being put to good use.

 

[orion23]

which part of the state? did you get names? That is BS. ever figure out what their reason was?

 

[IDdesertman]

Your right, this story does sound like BS...

 

[topper]

LAST EDITED ON Nov-05-08 AT 03:31AM (MST)[p]They saw spotlighting in the area, which turned out to be a rancher looking for a horse that got out, and they still had no legal reason for pulling me over. I don't appriciate being called a liar IDdeserman. Everything stated is true. have you never heard of an over zealous law enforcer. I'm trying my hardest to find out the names. I know I'm not the only person in Idaho to be hassled by the Fish and Game. Like I said, once the senior officer showed up, he was very profesional, but that doesnt change the fact that they violated my rights.

 

[tmbrown]

With the police you can file a formal complaint, im sure you can do that with f&g.

 

[Frontier]

I would not let this one fly. I don't believe they can search anything without probable cause, or a warrant, or your permission. It doesn't sound like they had any of the three. My dad had bad experience with the Idaho Fish and Game years ago, when I was a teenager. He never bought another hunting license after that and I never got to go with him hunting again.

 

[brymoore]

I wouldn't have let them search my truck.

I wish they'd spend some time chasing the illegal ATV riders I've been seeing this fall.

 

[topper]

I didn't really let them. They had us stand about 20' behind the truck, searched us, then they searched the truck

 

[brymoore]

It's my understanding that they cannot search a vehicle w/o the owners consent or a warrant.

 

[BowHuntWithaRifle]

Theres got to be more to this story than what we're being told. What were you doing in that area? Do you have any tags for that area? Did you tresspass anywhere? Was there any drinking involved before or after you were in that area? I realize you can go anywhere you like on public ground, but I assure you their was some reason they pulled you over. They had PC. Does the vehicle you were driving look like the one the rancher was driving while looking for his horse? So, I assume it was dark the intire time? LE can search a vehicle with PC, warrant or owner permission. They need to have one of the three to search. Perhaps the vehicle they saw spot lighting looked just like yours... Colors of vehicles from a distance are difficult to see in the dark.
I would say they watched the spotlighter, saw you, same vehicle, pulled you over, searched your rig under the PC of spotlighting, and was well within their rights to do so.
They thought it was you and instead of not doing their jobs, they did do their jobs and properly pulled you over, searched, found nothing, and let you go. Nothing illegal in doing that. I would be happy they were looking for someone they suspected was spotlighting game. So, it turned out to be a rancher looking for his horse... at least they were out doing their jobs.
And for the check station thing, they need the officers around to pull people over who do not stop at the check stations and to write citations for violations if any at the check stations. Alot of the time it takes up to three officers to properly handle situations.
I don't work for fish and game, but I do volunteer for them and as a former officer of the law, from what all you have said, they did nothing wrong as far as your story goes.
I am not accusing you or them of wrong doing, but looking at the story, they did nothing wrong. My .02 cents

 

[Idahoron]

I want to reply about the check station. I am a reservist and I work check stations from time to time. Most of the time at least half are reservists, office help and even fisheries people. I have worked one of the bigger stations and most of the time there is not even a guy there that has a gun.
I have also worked enforcement stations, and they are different. They mostly have guns, work late at night and stop everyone. They are looking for poachers, and that is what we pay them to do, and want them to do.
When we are working a check station there are times when we are swamped with people and other times when nothing is going on. A lot of the times they will have special projects like taking samples for CWD, teeth, weighing fawns. The CWD samples can be time consuming. Weighing fawns and taking down harvest reports takes people and time. When you figure a good portion of the people there are probably unpaid, a lot gets done and the cost is kept down. If you have any questions I would be glad to try to answer them or if I can't I will point you to someone that can. Ron

 

[topper]

LAST EDITED ON Nov-05-08 AT 10:05PM (MST)[p]Maybe I'm wrong about the check stations. Maybe they do need more people than I think.

I was in the area because I live in the area. They said they saw the spot light from over a mile away so they couldn't have seen the truck. Even if they did assume it was me, there was no reason that I was told to pull me over. Two of the officers were obviously anxious to write a ticket. The third was very informitive. And even if the search was legal (it wasn't) they didn't need to throw my stuff on the ground and leave it there. I guess im glad they error was on the side of trying to catch a poacher, but that was my first run in with the F&G, and I wasn't impressed. I wish I had gotten names so I could commend the helpful officer and tell him my thoughts on the other two.

 

[CUTTHROAT]

I've also worked many check stations for IDFG as a reservist and as a paid tech. The vast majority of the people at the station were non-paid volunteers. We even had to bring our own lunch. We had on old uniforms, so we looked like paid people.

I saw many many poached animals come through the fish and game freezers. The officers are underpaid and understaffed. They are really trying hard to find and prosecute poachers who take our game illegally. If they get a little over-zealous, so what? Cut em some slack. You sound like an anti-cop liberal.

 

[topper]

I'm glad to hear that so many are volenteers. It's great to know that that many people care.
No, I don't have a problem with police. Trust me I want every cheating a**hole caught. I know there are a lot of great officers, but these guys were out of line, and I know I'm not the only one who's experienced this side of the F&G.
Just because I don't want to be treated like a second rate citizen for doing nothing, doesn't make me a liberal. In fact your desire for over-zealous goverment involvment would lean more towards liberal.

 

[Frontier]

LAST EDITED ON Nov-06-08 AT 09:33PM (MST)[p] Topper, if what you say happened as you say and I believe it did, you have every right to be upset. There is rudeness, over zealous, etc. and there is polite and respectful. Most of the time I defend the Fish and Game and they do a fine job, but when people do not treat you with politeness and respect then it should be brought to their attention and the people over them, volunteers or paid.