The National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) has named Environmental Conservation Officer (ECO) Jerry Kinney, “2013 New York Officer of the Year,” New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Region 9 Captain Frank Lauricella announced today.  

“Thank you to the NWTF for honoring ECO Kinney’s outstanding commitment to wildlife conservation.  It is an honor to have him among our ranks,” said Major Scott Florence, acting director of Law Enforcement.

“ECO Kinney has demonstrated a true commitment to protecting our state’s natural resources and is a valuable asset to our Division of Law Enforcement,” said Captain Lauricella. “By investigating and enforcing violations, educating our youth and serving with integrity, he and his fellow ECOs perform valuable services that benefit our environment and our community every day.”

Throughout his career in DEC’s Region 9 office, ECO Kinney has worked collaboratively with law enforcement agencies and officers in the six–county area to handle numerous cases involving fish and wildlife, resource protection and public safety.  This past year, his abilities were highlighted in a challenging deer jacking investigation that spanned four months and involved several deer shot at night with the aid of artificial light.

Thanks to ECO Kinney’s persistence and outstanding investigative skills, he located a suspect and determined the defendant shot within 500 feet of a house while taking the deer, as well as other Environmental Conservation and Penal Law violations.       

NWTF is a half-million-member grassroots, non-profit organization with members in all 50 states, Canada and 11 foreign countries. It supports scientific wildlife management on public, private and corporate lands and wild turkey hunting as a traditional North American sport.  NWTF annually recognizes an officer who has demonstrated outstanding service and contributed significantly to conservation law enforcement.