The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) Division of Law Enforcement enforces the 71 chapters of New York State’s Environmental Conservation Law (ECL), protecting fish and wildlife and preserving environmental quality across New York. In 1880, the first eight Game Protectors proudly began serving to protect the natural resources and people of New York State. In 2024, the Division of Law Enforcement fielded more than 105,717 calls, resulting in Environmental Conservation Police Officers (ECOs) and Investigators across the state responding to more than 30,109 complaints and working on cases that resulted in 15,755 tickets or arrests for violations ranging from deer poaching to solid waste dumping, illegal mining, the illegal pet trade, and excessive emissions violations.

“DEC Environmental Conservation Police Officers (ECOs) and Investigators protect New York’s air, water, wildlife, and public safety, while also working to connect New Yorkers with the outdoors,” Acting Commissioner Amanda Lefton said. “As we tackle environmental threats on all fronts, I applaud the critical work DEC’s ECOs and Investigators are undertaking to enforce New York’s Environmental Conservation Law and ensure a cleaner, greener, safer, and more resilient New York State.”

Youth Turkey Hunt – Greene County

On April 26, in Greene County, ECOs Bevis, Johnson, and Palmateer hosted a youth turkey hunt for a second year in partnership with the New York Conservation Officers Association, Northern Catskills Longbeards Chapter of the National Wildlife Turkey Federation, and the Norton Hill Wildlife Club. On April 19, a week before the hunt, Lieutenant Glorioso, ECOs Bevis, Milliron, and Palmateer presented “shoot or don’t shoot” scenarios to participating youth hunters at the Norton Hill Wildlife Club in Greenville to stress the importance of recognizing clean, ethical, safe, and legal shots while afield. In addition to hunting safety education, the Officers worked one-on-one with each hunter to pattern their shotguns. Thirteen youth hunters attended one or both events. Participants, parents, and mentors enjoyed a barbecue after the hunt, shared stories about experiences afield, and received hunting-related gifts to cap off a successful turkey hunting weekend.

ECOs and volunteers participate in 2^nd Annual Youth Turkey Hunt in Greene County (photo attached)

16^th Annual Jefferson County Youth Turkey Hunt

On April 26, ECOs in DEC Region 6 assisted youth hunters at the 16^th Annual Jefferson County Youth Turkey Hunt hosted by the Sackets Harbor Sportsman’s Club. Eleven youth hunters participated in the hunt, harvesting two birds. The young hunters attended a safety course at the sportsman’s club in the town of Hounsfield a day before the hunt. The course focused on the rules and regulations of turkey hunting, hunting strategies and decoy use, calls and calling, hunting safety, marksmanship, and ethics. ECOs accompanied the youth hunters out in the field despite heavy rains that day. The New York Conservation Officers Association, National Wild Turkey Federation, and other generous sponsors made donations.

ECOs and volunteers participate in 16^th Annual Jefferson County Youth Turkey Hunt (photo attached)

Fallen, But Never Forgotten – Nassau County

On May 3, ECOs Anderson, Dickson, Franz, Layton, and Lieutenant Amato joined fellow law enforcement officers to honor their fallen colleagues at the New York State Fraternal Order of Police Memorial in Hicksville, Nassau County. Officers honored 73 of their law enforcement colleagues this year, four killed in the line of duty, two in motor vehicle accidents, one lost to Covid-19, and 66 who passed due to illnesses related to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City. Environmental Conservation Police Lieutenant David J. McShane was among those honored. Lieutenant McShane succumbed to 9/11-related illness in January 2024. His name was also recently added to the New York State Police Memorial wall in Albany and the National Police Memorial wall in Washington, D.C. ECOs honored Lieutenant McShane with an honorary salute and placed a red carnation next to his name. The New York State Fraternal Order of Police Memorial includes 1,988 names of New York State Law Enforcement Officers who made the ultimate sacrifice.

Fallen Environmental Conservation Police Lieutenant David J. McShane honored by law enforcement colleagues in Nassau County (photo attached)

Snake Wrangling – Ulster County

On May 3, ECO Chomicki responded to a call about a snake under an outdoor stairway at a home in the town of New Paltz, Ulster County. Officer Chomicki identified the snake as a copperhead, a venomous pit viper native to eastern North America. ECO Chomicki carefully removed the snake from the stairway with assistance from the homeowner and relocated it further out on the property, away from high traffic areas.

ECO Chomicki captures snake in the backyard of a residence in the town of New Paltz, Ulster County (photo attached)

ATV Detail – Suffolk County

On May 4, ECOs DeVito and Dickson participated in a detail focused on the illegal use of All-Terrain-Vehicles (ATVs) and off-road vehicles in the Suffolk County Pine Barrens. ATVs and off-road vehicles are prohibited in State and County parks unless authorized in posted areas. Officers DeVito and Dickson responded to an incident involving dirt bikes while patrolling Brookhaven State Park after they observed a child riding as a passenger on one of the bikes. It is illegal to ride off-road equipment with more passengers than there are seats because it can impair the operator’s ability to safely maneuver the vehicle. Officers issued a total of 11 citations to the two dirt bike operators for the related violations and Suffolk Sheriff’s Office confiscated the dirt bikes.

Dirt bike confiscated during ATV and off-road vehicle detail in Suffolk County Pine Barrens (photo attached)

If You Care, Leave It There – Onondaga County

On May 11, ECO Scalisi responded to a report of an individual getting out of a vehicle to catch a wild baby goose in Syracuse. A bystander captured video of the incident and took down the vehicle’s license plate number. Officer Scalisi located the vehicle a short time later, followed it, and eventually pulled the driver over. The Officer interviewed the driver who admitted to catching the baby goose and claimed they planned to add it to their backyard chicken flock. Officer Scalisi removed the baby goose from the vehicle and learned during the investigation that the driver was operating the vehicle without a valid driver’s license. The driver received tickets for unlawful possession of protected wildlife and aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle in the second degree. ECO Scalisi reunited the baby goose with its family in a VIDEO that can be viewed here: https://youtube.com/shorts/mqullrqXiHY?feature=share 

DEC reminds New Yorkers to appreciate wildlife from a safe distance and resist the urge to touch or move young wildlife. Fawns, baby birds, and other offspring may seem abandoned, but their parents are often nearby, and well-intentioned interference can pose risks to the animals and humans. For more information on DEC’s “If you care, leave it there” principles, visit our website.

Baby goose rescued and returned to its family in Onondaga County (photo attached)

Air Quality Awareness – Statewide

ECOs observed Air Quality Awareness Week in New York (May 5 – 9) with Heavy-Duty Diesel Vehicle inspections from New York City to Buffalo. Officers checked hundreds of commercial vehicles traveling the roadways to ensure compliance with State air quality and safety requirements.

Stepped up patrols in Chemung and Steuben counties in recent weeks netted more than 30 violations and misdemeanors for unrepaired fluid leaks, tampering with emissions control devices, and truck pollution. Additional vehicle and traffic infractions were handled by our law enforcement partners at the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT).

ECOs and Investigators involved in the Region 8/Zone 4 detail in Chemung and Steuben counties included Lieutenant Lochner, Environmental Crimes Investigator Crain, and ECOs Dalecki, Farrand, Lifrieri, and Rockefeller, as well as two NYSDOT Inspectors.

ECO Fishing Compliance Checks – Statewide

ECOs conducting fishing compliance checks statewide encountered subjects with creative hiding places and interesting explanations in recent weeks. Here are some of their more notable cases:

• On April 17, ECO Maynard observed two subjects under the Throgs Neck Bridge at Little Bay Park near Fort Totten, Queens County, moving rocks and placing items in a bucket. Officer Maynard approached the individuals as they left the area and observed numerous mussels in the bucket. The ECO issued one subject a ticket for taking shellfish from uncertified waters. Shellfish taken from waters that are not seasonally certified may be illegally sold to unsuspecting buyers who could get sick from consuming the fish. Tickets are returnable to Queens Criminal Court. 
  

• ECOs in Ulster County issued several tickets in recent weeks to anglers catching over the legal limit of river herring in Rondout Creek. Regulations for the recreational take of river herring on the Hudson River and its tributaries, north of the George Washington Bridge, is 10 per angler.

• On April 29, ECOs Johnson and Walraven inspected a vessel and observed 40 live herring in a tank and 212 dead herring in a cooler. One of the anglers claimed to be in the process of obtaining his marine commercial permit but stated he had not yet received it. The live herring were returned to the water, and the deceased fish were confiscated for evidence. Both anglers received tickets for taking herring over the limit, commercially fishing without a license, and taking herring by means not allowed on a permit. 

• A few days later on May 4, during heavy rains, ECO Walraven ticketed two anglers at Rondout Creek after finding them in possession of 41 herring, more than double their allowance under the law. The individuals were charged with taking fish over the limit and ordered to return the live fish to the water. The tickets are returnable to the Town of Esopus Court. 
  

• On April 30, ECO Parker received reports regarding gill nets set in the Hudson River in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess County. Officer Parker contacted ECO Wamsley, who covers the area, and ECO Wamsley responded to the location the next morning. The Officer observed a camouflage boat retrieving the net and returning to shore. Officer Wamsley approached the area undetected and observed the individual remove 69 illegally taken river herring from the gill net. The subject admitted to violations including leaving the net out overnight, unattended, and staked down to shore. The individual received four tickets currently pending in the Town of Hyde Park Court. 
  

• On April 30, ECO Maynard responded to a complaint of an angler on a kayak illegally taking undersized tautog (blackfish) at Floyd Bennet Field by the Marine Parkway Bridge in Kings County. Officer Maynard observed a legal-size blackfish in plain view while interviewing the angler but discovered a black bag in the center compartment of the kayak containing five undersized blackfish. Officer Maynard issued two tickets to the angler for taking undersized marine fish and taking marine fish more than the legal bag limit. New York State DEC Recreational Fishing regulations allow anglers to keep up to two tautog at least 16 inches long. The subject was allowed to keep the one legal size (19-inch) tautog he possessed because he had a valid marine registration. The illegal fish were confiscated, and tickets are returnable to Kings New York Criminal Court. 

• ECO Day issued several tickets in early May to anglers catching undersized striped bass at Sunken Meadow State Park in Smithtown, Suffolk County. Three anglers attempted to conceal the fish under rain gear and were charged with possessing undersized fish, failing to release fish without due harm, and one individual received an additional ticket for failure to possess a valid marine registry. A week later, ECO Day observed four anglers burying undersized striped bass in the sand. When confronted, the anglers told ECOs Cacciola and Day that they hadn’t caught any fish, but the ECOs dug up the buried fish quickly and issued several tickets to the group including possession of undersized striped bass, no marine registry, and targeting striped bass with J-hooks.

• On May 13, ECOs Noble and Pansini and Lieutenant Auguscinski conducted overnight boat patrols in Queens and Raritan Bay, Richmond County, focused on marine fishing and navigation offenses. The Officers inspected several vessels and observed violations including fish outside legal size and possession limits. ECOs issued 14 tickets for a variety of Environmental Conservation Law and navigation law offenses and confiscated nine fish as evidence.
  

Bucket of mussels confiscated during fishing compliance check in Queens County (photo attached)

Herring caught illegally in Rondout Creek, Ulster County (photo attached)

Illegal net placed in the Hudson River in the town of Hyde Park, Dutchess County (photo attached)

Undersized blackfish (tautog) discovered during fishing compliance check in Kings County (photo attached)

Undersized striped bass discovered during fishing compliance check at Sunken Meadow State Park in Suffolk County (photo attached)

ECO Noble with illegal fish confiscated during late-night boat patrols in Richmond County (photo attached)

To contact an ECO to report an environmental crime or to report an incident, call 1-844-DEC-ECOS for 24-hour dispatch or email (for non-urgent violations).