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Another ODNR black eye...WTF

Milo

Tatonka guide.
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took what down? the link still works...

David Warner

Matthew Roberts

& Allan Wright
 

"J"

Git Off My Lawn
Supporting Member
56,741
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North Carolina
Yeah, some of them think they're above the rules and laws when they take that oath.... I guess it's a good thing there isn't more like these idiots..... Talk about BS, they pull this stuff then go around and cite people for BS things...... You're right Milo, another black eye for this dept.....
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
Staff member
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The Ohio Inspector General released a report Thursday claiming state wildlife officers in Brown County routinely hunted while on the clock, often seeking overtime after a day of bagging deer, turkey or squirrels.

The agency’s findings led to theft in office indictments Thursday in a Brown County court of an Ohio Department of Natural Resources supervisor, David Warner, and an ODNR employee, Matthew Roberts. Another employee, Allan Wright, was named in the investigation but had already been charged in federal court on unrelated charges.

The inspector general’s office also recommended that ODNR increase monitoring of its on-duty wildlife officers. These officers were able to clock in and out remotely and never check in throughout the day.

“Instead of being engaged all day protecting hunters and others and making sure the regulations of wildlife are being observed, they’re checked out,” said Ohio Deputy Inspector General Carl Enslen. “They’re being paid and they’re hunting rather than paying attention to those duties they’re sworn to uphold.”

The investigation raised questions about wildlife officer safety absent oversight. “If a wildlife officer were unconscious, incapacitated and unable to operate a radio, the department’s failure to mark any wildlife officer’s position for long periods of time could pose serious consequences,” the report says.

ODNR Spokeswoman Bethany McCorkle said this will be part of “an internal administrative investigation going on now.”

The inspector general found the officers in 2008, 2009 and 2010 would some days radio in to start their shift, then call out at the end of the day with no other radio contact in between. Those same days, they would hunt deer, tagging and recording their kills as they are required to by state law. They would later claim overtime on their timesheets for some of the hunts.

They would sometimes leave their Division of Wildlife vehicles parked, often near Wright’s house, according to the vehicles’ onboard GPS.

Wright — who cooperated with investigators under the terms of his prior plea — told investigators they would leave their gun belts and uniform shirts in the garage during the day. He said they hunted turkey and squirrel as well.

He said he wasn’t worried about getting caught because Warner was his supervisor.

“There was no oversight,” Wright told investigators, according to their report.

“In this case what was curious was the lack of radio contact throughout the day,” Enslen said. “In this investigation we did not go into how systemic this is throughout the institution.”

The wildlife officers were caught after someone forwarded to the inspector general’s office in February 2012 a photograph of Warner, Wright and five other men posing with seven fresh kills in front of Wright’s garage. The photo had been posted on a website promoting the deer mineral lick Trophy Rock. In it, Warner and Wright were wearing their uniform pants.

A statement from ODNR said Roberts is on restricted duty and Warner is on unpaid administrative leave during the investigation.

Wright was fired from ODNR in August 2011 after pleading guilty to federal charges including selling a state resident hunting license to a South Carolina wildlife officer. He was sentenced Tuesday in federal court to 5 years probation, three months house arrest, a $1,000 fine and to surrender his hunting and fishing license.

Last year, Wright was paid $56,416, Warner $65,789 and Roberts $55,943, according to state records.
 

Jackalope

Dignitary Member
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Looks like wright plea dealed and ratted people out so he could get probation for his violations.
 

Jackalope

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Staff member
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what counties were these wardens in?


Wright was in Brown County..

As for the new guys.. There we're 11 not 15


  • Jeffrey Berry, 44, Zanesville, state wildlife officer assigned to Muskingum County
  • Aaron Brown, 31, Wellington, state wildlife officer assigned to Summit County
  • Joshua Elster, 30, Williamsport, state wildlife officer assigned to Pickaway County
  • Jesse Janosik, 21, Warren, state wildlife officer assigned to Cuyahoga County
  • Augustus Kiebel, 23, Alexandria, state wildlife officer assigned to Clermont County
  • Justus Nethero, 22, Dublin, state wildlife officer assigned to Delaware County
  • Craig Porter II, 23, Cadiz, state wildlife officer assigned to Jefferson County
  • Markus Schemmel II, 22, St. Marys, state wildlife officer assigned to Adams County
  • Ryan Schock, 24, Beavercreek, state wildlife officer assigned to Hamilton County
  • Vincent Untied, 23, Granville, state wildlife officer assigned to Morrow County
  • Eric VonAlmen, 26, Columbus Grove, state wildlife officer assigned to Lucas County
 

Jackalope

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The good news is it looks like Wright got what was coming to him. And in the process so will the supervisor and others that covered it up.
 

jagermeister

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Ohio
Dang, some of would love to have their jobs....what idiots

Trust me, you don't really want their job. They brainwash these guys into believing that every single outdoorsman they come across is doing something wrong. And you work more than you hunt during the hunting season... well, usually anyway... these assholes were apparently the exception to that.

---

These guys are idiots. It's one thing to be going undercover during deer season, posing as a deer hunter, but to actually shoot deer and pose for pictures?!?!? Damn fools... In the Sandusky and Maumee Rivers during the spring, there are undercover WO's fishing all over amongst the general public... but I've yet to see one taking walleye home with them.
 

Milo

Tatonka guide.
8,184
157
does it just seem to be an abnormally high incident rates with wildlife officers? I mean there are a lot of police officers on the streets and I don' think we hear that many stories of them doing stuff like this or morally "irresponsible" behavior like I seem to be seeing in ohio. theoretically there are FAR fewer wildlife officers than police officers so one would think would be more of these behavior issue with police.
 

Jackalope

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does it just seem to be an abnormally high incident rates with wildlife officers? I mean there are a lot of police officers on the streets and I don' think we hear that many stories of them doing stuff like this or morally "irresponsible" behavior like I seem to be seeing in ohio. theoretically there are FAR fewer wildlife officers than police officers so one would think would be more of these behavior issue with police.


They have too much power and too little supervision.
 

Milo

Tatonka guide.
8,184
157
They have too much power and too little supervision.
I agree but its hard to justify a supervisor over a couple guys. It appears there is a culture there that is leaving me scratching my head...sort of like penn state
 

Jackalope

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I agree but its hard to justify a supervisor over a couple guys. It appears there is a culture there that is leaving me scratching my head...sort of like penn state


They should be augmented to the county sheriff department.. The sheriffs department has, drug investigators, bomb squads, swat, murder, etc.. Augmenting a wildlife officer into the command should be very easy. They still take orders and directive from the state division of wildlife, but their supervisor, radio checks, and place of duty is the county sheriffs office.
 

hickslawns

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The good news is it looks like Wright got what was coming to him. And in the process so will the supervisor and others that covered it up.

A little bit of irony there, huh? It would have been a shame to see them essentially walk after the SC deal. Sounds like they got what they had coming to them after all.

Milo

does it just seem to be an abnormally high incident rates with wildlife officers? I mean there are a lot of police officers on the streets and I don' think we hear that many stories of them doing stuff like this or morally "irresponsible" behavior like I seem to be seeing in ohio. theoretically there are FAR fewer wildlife officers than police officers so one would think would be more of these behavior issue with police.

Great question. You hear about "administrative leave" or "paid time off" or similar things with police while under investigation. I think sometimes this stuff just misses the news. I know we had a sargent quit on our local police force. Pretty small community. I didn't realize it for months and I knew the guy and pretty well all the police, fire, and road guys. I never asked. Nobody ever mentioned it. I just figured he was working undercover or on another department. Never made the news because he quit rather than being fired. I think it happens more frequently, just more quietly.
 

COB-TY

Retired to the happy hunting grounds above.
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Ohio
Awwww come on Milo! The division does a wonderful job! Where's george when you need him to defend "our" division! NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:smiley_crocodile::smiley_crocodile:rotflmao
 
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