DFG Warden encounters who weren't up to date on regs

Has anyone has had an experience with DFG not knowing the regulations, or told you incorrect ones/hassled you over something you were doing that wasn't illegal? I am writing a paper for school, and would appreciate if you didn't mind sharing the experience, especially if they resulted in a ticket/court. If you don't mind sharing, please contact me and give me a rundown of what happened.

About 25 years ago I shot a snow goose at Gray Lodge while hunting pheasants and the ranger came to me and told me that I could not shoot geese in the field and I could only shoot geese over water. I said thats odd most geese are shot in the fields over decoys. So he takes my shotgun and my goose and we walk back to the office at Gray Lodge checks the regs talks to some other rangers and tells me oops my mistake. Didn't even offer me a ride back to our area. If you haven't been to Gray Lodge so you know its a large place.

Look no further than the SPPO/Rangers at Limekiln.  There was a successive tandem that were straight up a$$holes in addition to frequently being uninformed and wrong.

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=871.0
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=1309.msg9042#msg9042
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=32502.0

Due to my last interaction with the limekiln Ranger, i have not returned to that mystical launch . . . 

bigeyedave's story is right up your alley.......had to be the most egregious I've seen.


http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=15078.0

Look no further than the SPPO/Rangers at Limekiln.  There was a successive tandem that were straight up a$$holes in addition to frequently being uninformed and wrong.

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=871.0
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=1309.msg9042#msg9042
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=32502.0

Due to my last interaction with the limekiln Ranger, i have not returned to that mystical launch . . .

Ranger rick is no Longer there guys. The current staff there are awesome people and have been nothing but accommodating towards us.
But yeah, he wasn't DFG. He was a ranger who needed a serious ego boost. My experience with him has been nothing short of hysterical, if you don't let him get under your skin.

I've messed with him on a few Occasions. He didn't know the limit, the fish species, or other regulations, but then again he is not DFG. He just needed the ego boost.

Outstanding! Thanks guys, I was beginning to think I would have to scrap this and find something else as I only had one or two myself, and couldn't base it solely on that.

Look no further than the SPPO/Rangers at Limekiln.  There was a successive tandem that were straight up a$$holes in addition to frequently being uninformed and wrong.

http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=871.0
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=1309.msg9042#msg9042
http://www.norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=32502.0

Due to my last interaction with the limekiln Ranger, i have not returned to that mystical launch . . .

Ranger rick is no Longer there guys. The current staff there are awesome people and have been nothing but accommodating towards us.
But yeah, he wasn't DFG. He was a ranger who needed a serious ego boost. My experience with him has been nothing short of hysterical, if you don't let him get under your skin.

I've messed with him on a few Occasions. He didn't know the limit, the fish species, or other regulations, but then again he is not DFG. He just needed the ego boost.

Maybe the fact that he was state parks and not DFG sort of explains how he couldn't differentiate a copper from a verm from a perch lol
cool, maybe I'll make it down there sometime this year!  great to hear you got to jack with him lol.  i feel cheated never got my shot . . .

I enforce CCR Title 8, and there is no way I could know all the regs. DFG same thing.Take Title 14 they enforce, add in PC, VC, and other laws they enforce, there is a chance they can over look something or make a false assumption about how a reg applies to a given situation. I wouldnt want their job. Being polite and cooperative also goes a long way, if in a situation, and you try and prove you are smarter than the warden, well, prob won't be too favorable for ya. 

You might have seen this from another post, but the park ranger at Ft Ross on Saturday 3/14 told some scuba divers that the ling limit was still 2 until 4/15.  I had previously told the same divers (correctly) that the 3 ling limit and 5 black RF sublimit were effective.  He told them if they had 3 he would have ticketed them.  I wasn't there when he talked to them.  He was a nice guy with me and was only concerned that we knew about the ab closure.  I guess he could have radioed dispatch and had them check the new reg if he did want to cite them and they protested.

I enforce CCR Title 8, and there is no way I could know all the regs. DFG same thing.Take Title 14 they enforce, add in PC, VC, and other laws they enforce, there is a chance they can over look something or make a false assumption about how a reg applies to a given situation.

Ignorance of the law is no excuse for breaking it.....it's also not an excuse for poorly enforcing it.

I think the same level of responsibility should fall on the shoulders of both sportsmen and wardens.  They tend to not let a whole lot of people off the hook for an honest mistake, they should get equally bent over for the same. 

I agree, every person has, in our agency, an area of specialization. In my fiekd, I know the laws front and back, but send me to inspect a bakery? I know enough to be dangerous The coastal wardens SHOULD be that way to with the ocean regs, and probably ok if they are fuzzy on the blue grouse regs and vice versa

yep, cop for 33 years now. Its my responsibility to know and be correct. But, I do not know it all. If on a call and something came up that I knew was wrong. but didn't really know the right section that applies,  I would get ahold of someone right then or let it go and then go get myself informed for next time. Tis of course would be in my area of assignment. Like N8V said its not possible to know it all, but a DFG guy should know DFG stuff.

I was deer hunting with my 13yr old son. We were on the way home and at lower elev foothills. We were trying to find a rabbit to shoot to take home as we drove along a road. We had a target pellet gun. I saw one and pulled over.
 As I was getting out a DFG came around the corner in his truck and we were both surprised to see each other. I had pellet rifle in hand and door still open as I got out. He quickly stopped, got out and walked towards me. His hand was extended out towards me as if to want me to hand him the rifle. He being a smart cop said several times,"what did you see? What did you see?"
This is an attempt to get me to say I was hunting at that moment and then may have been a violation of law. I said I saw nothing and was stopping to let my son shoot the pellet gun.
He then explained that as of Jan 1st the coming year DFG was going to have an administrative rule that considered pellet guns the same as a firearm for purposes of hunting. But, at this time it is just a non-firearm and since I wasn't hunting from the road it was OK.
So, this is a case of a DFG guy who had his presentation polished, trying to get me to say I was hunting, and also knew his current regs.

Good replies. This is in no way to make DFG look bad or throw horror stories. Just an assignment to write a proposed solution for a problem.

One time I was stopped and told hunting jackrabbits was illegal because they weren't in season. As politely as I could I explained they were year around, and cotton tails had a season. He proceeded to argue with me but eventually said oh, ok. Guessing after he radio'd in.

I've never had an issue with an unknowledgeable warden in the field. I had a philosophical difference with a Butte County warden about 20+ years ago - we both thought the other was a complete asshole and were probably both correct - his name was Bishop. But he was fair.

I did have a biologist that couldn't tell a gopher from a copper and another that liked to ask law enforcement questions.

I did have a biologist that couldn't tell a gopher from a copper and another that liked to ask law enforcement questions.

Now that is pretty horrible.