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 2023, the Division of Law Enforcement fielded more than 101,500 calls, resulting in Environmental Conservation Police Officers (ECOs) and Investigators across the state responding to more than 30,932 complaints and working on cases that resulted in nearly 16,900 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 and Investigators from Brooklyn to Buffalo and beyond work around the clock to protect our environment, safeguard public health, and hold law breakers accountable,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said. “As DEC continues its efforts to build a Police force more reflective of the communities they serve, the public can rest assured that our Officers, in partnership with representatives of local, State, and federal law enforcement agencies, continue to enforce New York’s stringent Environmental Conservation Laws.”

 

Honoring a Fallen Hero – Onondaga County

Honoring a fallen hero. On Jan. 29, DEC’s Division of Law Enforcement remembered one of their own in Camillus as they joined the family and friends of Lieutenant David McShane who passed away earlier this month from an illness related to his assignment at the World Trade Center following terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Following the events of 9/11, Lieutenant McShane was assigned to New York City to assist in search and recovery efforts. He retired from the Division of Law Enforcement after 22 years of dedicated service on June 26, 2022. Lieutenant McShane was from Marcellus, Onondaga County, and is survived by his wife and three children. Governor Kathy Hochul directed flags to half-staff to honor Lieutenant McShane and his selfless service to his state and his country.

 

For more photos from the funeral services including the release of a red-tailed hawk to honor Lieutenant McShane’s love of falconry please visit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/nysdec/albums/72177720314451447/ 

 

DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos joins Division of Law Enforcement Director Karen Przyklek and Law Enforcement Officers from across the State honor fallen Lieutenant David McShane (photo attached)

 

Family, friends, and colleagues gather in Camillus to pay their respects to fallen DEC Division of Law Enforcement Police Lieutenant David J. McShane (photo attached)

ECO David J. McShane (photo attached)

 

Twice in One Day - Suffolk County 

On Jan. 8, ECOs Vandenbos and Della Rocco heard gunshots while on patrol in Southampton. The Officers investigated the origin of the shots and encountered a group of nine hunters pursuing deer during the Suffolk County January season. The ECOs checked the hunters for compliance and discovered two were not wearing required back tags. Additionally, two of the hunters failed to wear blaze orange while hunting big game with a gun and two hunters mixed buckshot with their slugs. In New York State, hunting deer with anything other than a single projectile is unlawful. The ECOs educated the hunters, corrected the issues discovered in the field, and arranged to meet back up with the hunting party later that day. Officers checked the deer harvested by the hunters when they returned to the check station and discovered one of the hunters tagged his deer with the same incorrect Deer Management Permit tag Officers warned him about using earlier. ECOs instructed the hunter to fill out another tag and ticketed the subject. ECOs issued a total of 12 tickets to the group. 

 

Fish Cases Closed - Nassau County 

On Jan. 10, ECOs in Nassau County witnessed the long-awaited conclusion of cases against two anglers accused of taking undersized and over-the-limit fish from New York’s marine district. 

 

On Oct. 3, 2023, ECO Kochanowski conducted surveillance of a recreational fishing vessel illegally tied to the support beams of the Fundy Channel Bridge in Hempstead Bay. The ECO observed a fisherman on board catch two out-of-season tautog and place the fish in a black garbage bag toward the stern of the boat. Tautog season did not begin until Oct. 15. Officer Kochanowski contacted Bay Constables in the town of Hempstead for assistance and the Officers boarded the boat where they found two anglers in possession of 63 out-of-season tautog and one undersized black sea bass.  

 

Officers issued tickets to the operator of the vessel for not having a commercial food fishing license while in possession of over-the-limit tautog, possession of undersized black sea bass, failure to carry an active marine registry, failure to release fish without undue harm, and possession of 63 out-of-season tautog. The second fisherman received a ticket for no commercial food fishing license while in possession of over-the-limit tautog. The recreational limit for tautog is four fish per person per day and the commercial limit is 25 fish per vessel per day.  

 

On Nov. 22, 2023, a judge found one operator of the vessel guilty of all charges and ordered him to pay a fine of $6,450, along with a $75 court surcharge for each ticket. During the trial, the angler’s defense was that nobody physically saw him catch 64 fish. 

 

On Jan. 10, the second defendant pleaded guilty to the charge against him and paid a fine of $1,000 with a $75 court surcharge.  

 

Tautog illegally taken from New York’s Marine District, Nassau County (photo attached)

 

Dolphin on the Beach – Suffolk County 

On Jan. 11, ECO Dickson received a report of a dolphin on Cedar Beach in Babylon. The ECO responded to the location and joined town of Babylon Operations Department employees working nearby to repair storm damage. It appeared the deceased dolphin had washed up on the beach due to storm-related high winds and tides. Officer Dickson contacted the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society (AMSEAS) and the organization expressed interest in conducting a necropsy to identify the cause of death. ECO Dickson and Babylon employees assisted AMSEAS with preparing the dolphin for transport to their animal lab. Results of the necropsy are pending. 

 

Deceased dolphin washed up on Cedar Beach in Suffolk County (photo attached)

 

Squirrel Painter Caught Red Handed – Putnam County

On Jan. 13, ECOs assisted in charging a Putnam County man for a series of squirrel-painting incidents in the town of Patterson. On Dec. 23, 2023, ECOs Franz and Schuck met with Putnam County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) Detectives and a Probation Officer regarding an individual on probation suspected of painting squirrels red and releasing them in a nearby town park. On Dec. 28, 2023, ECOs conducted surveillance in the area and observed a bright red squirrel crossing the street less than a block away from the subject’s residence. ECOs and Putnam County SPCA Detectives interviewed the subject on Jan. 13. He admitted to trapping the squirrels and painting them in order to keep track of those returning to his yard and causing his dogs to bark. ECO Franz ticketed the subject for violations related to the trapping, transporting, and liberating of wildlife. Putnam County SPCA Detectives also charged him for the mistreatment of animals.

Equipment probationer used to paint squirrels in Putnam County (photo attached)

 

Painted squirrel in Putnam County (photo attached)

 

Stealing Steelhead - Niagara County 

On Jan. 17, Lieutenant VerHague received a complaint about two anglers taking steelhead illegally from 18 Mile Creek, a tributary of Lake Ontario, in the town of Newfane. Lieutenant Ver Hague contacted ECO Wolgast to assist with establishing a camouflaged position while the Lieutenant patrolled on foot to the public parking area. Officer Wolgast soon observed the suspected poachers packing up and heading to their vehicle with a bag filled with fish and alerted Lt. VerHague to the anglers’ impending arrival. The Officers met the anglers back at their vehicle, inspected their catch, and discovered several illegal steelhead under the legal length of 25 inches. The anglers caught 12-inch steelhead, which are legal for catch in Lake Erie and its tributaries, but not in Lake Ontario tributaries. They were also over their one-fish-per-person limit. The Officers educated the anglers about size and catch limits and ticketed both for possessing undersized and over-the-limit steelhead, returnable to the Town of Newfane Court. The fish were donated to food-insecure families in Niagara County. 

 

Steelhead caught illegally from 18 Mile Creek in Niagara County (photo attached)

 

Hootie Hoo - Suffolk County 

On Jan. 19, ECO DeRose received a report of an owl potentially injured in high grass off Sunrise Highway in Suffolk County. The Officer responded and discovered a great horned owl in the grass next to a wire fence. The owl seemed alert but gave little resistance to being captured. Officer DeRose transported the owl to Sweetbriar Nature Center for treatment.  

 

ECO DeRose with injured great horned owl discovered in Suffolk County (photo attached)

Medical Emergency - New York County 

On Jan. 20, ECO Goonan received a report of an unconscious woman on the south side of Randall’s Island while on a marine fisheries patrol. The Officer arrived at the location along with New York City Police Department and Parks Enforcement and found the individual in the snow. Officer Goonan, a certified Emergency Medical Technician, assessed the patient and found her to be experiencing a seizure. The Officers worked together to place the patient in the back of a City Parks Enforcement vehicle with a blanket to prevent hypothermia due to the freezing temperatures and subzero windchills. ECO Goonan and his law enforcement colleagues then waited with the patient until EMS arrived. The subject was transported to a local hospital.  

 

ECO Goonan’s patrol vehicle on Randall’s Island during medical emergency (photo attached)

 

Don’t Get Pinched – New York County 

On Jan. 23, ECOs in Region 2 kicked off an enforcement campaign focused on lobsters unlawfully commercialized in New York City. Lobsters must meet certain size requirements before they can be harvested and sold in New York State. The Officers checked multiple seafood wholesalers, grocery stores, and restaurants to ensure the lobsters offered for sale were of the appropriate size. 

 

This effort builds on similar enforcement actions ECOs in Region 2 conducted at the end of December 2023, inspecting seafood distributors as part of New York State’s Joint Enforcement Agreement with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to protect aquatic species. Confiscated fish and lobsters under legal size limits are, whenever possible, donated to charitable organizations to feed food-insecure families. 

 

ECO Ableson gathers lobster for measurement during New York City enforcement detail (photo attached)

 

ECO Currey donates seized lobsters to the Bowery Mission of New York City (photo attached)

Can’t Spray Here – Suffolk County 

On Jan. 24, the town of Babylon Department of Environmental Control requested ECO assistance with site inspections of several locations, including a site alleged to be storing and painting large amounts of scaffolding and scaffolding material. ECO Dickson responded to the location and joined the other Officers as they discovered a wooden shed with old paint cans, brushes, rollers, and spray guns, among other materials in the rear of the property. Officer Dickson educated the property owner about the laws regulating the use of spray guns and air contaminants without a proper spray booth and permits. The business owner received a Notice of Violation for operating a spray booth without a permit.  

 

Shed with illegal painting materials discovered in Suffolk County (photo attached)

Tidal Surge Damage Assessment – Long Island 

During January, Region 1 ECOs responded in force to assist local leaders and emergency crews officials in assessing environmental damage caused by floods and tidal storm surges. More information about New York State’s efforts to assist with regional storm response and resiliency efforts is available here and here. 

 

ECO DeVito assesses damage at Ditch Plains in Montauk (photo attached)

  Lt. Reilly assessing damage to the West Tunnel at Tobay Beach (photo attached)

 Lt. Amato inspects Saltaire and Bayview Avenue in the town of Islip (photo attached)

 

ECO Smith surveys erosion at Gilgo Beach in the town of Babylon (photo attached)

 

Flooding at Cedar Beach / Salt Shack Restaurant, town of Babylon, Suffolk County (photo attached)

 

ECOs McGhee, Vandenbos and Zullo assessing storm damage and flooding at the Ponquogue Bridge, Hampton Bays (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).