The Honor Guard of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
As I step out of my vehicle, I adjust my duty belt and make the short walk to a popular fishing hole on the Cold Springs National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. The area has been closed off to public use due to a dangerous underwater current, so anyone down there is violating refuge regulations.
The group I find has several men fishing and laughing, and as they see my approach, smiles are replaced with apprehension. I announce myself as a Refuge Officer and ask to see their fishing licenses. As everyone rummages in pockets, jackets, and wallets, I inform them that the area is closed to all public access. Since they entered from an area without posted signs, I issue only a verbal warning. As the men relax, we go on to chatting about good fishing holes, the best bait to use, and the past waterfowl season. Mid-sentence, one of the men looks at my belt and exclaims, “Dang lady, you got a gun, are you a cop?”
I’d like to say this was the first time this has happened, but I hear some variant of that phase at least once a week.
Refuge Officer Rebecca Merritt. (Photo: Ray Haight/USFWS)
Despite our presence on National Wildlife Refuges for the past century, it seems that we still surprise the public with our law enforcement authority. I hope that with social media sites, new reality shows such as Wild Justice and Wardens, and an increase in officer presence on wildlife refuges the public learns more about Conservation Law Enforcement.
Public education is one of the many duties a Refuge Officer has, and I believe, one of the most important. We help Americans understand and obey wildlife protection laws, and by doing so, play our part in conserving the future. You can learn more about the future of Refuge Law Enforcement by reading the Draft Vision Document.
You can learn more about Refuge Officers at www.nwroa.org. Follow us on Twitter @NWROA
Rebecca Merritt, President , National Wildlife Refuge Officers Association and Refuge Officer , Mid-Columbia National Wildlife Refuge Complex
8 Comments in this post »
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I think U.S. Fish and Wildlife should change the Refuge Officer’s name to ,”Game Warden”! Back when
I was a Refuge Officer it was hard for the public to understand when you announced, Hello, “Refuge Officer”! They looked at u like what did u say, whst is that! Which is an officer safety issue because if you walk up and you end up in a shhoting their defense will be some guy walking through the woods had a gun on his side and i didnt under stand what he said, i thought he was crazy, i couldnt understand what he was saying! But the public understands,” Game Warden” or “Police”! People use to read my badge and ask me what is a Refugee Officer! Maybe they should change their name when the change over to 1801′s!!! I miss the FWS but I do enjoy the USFS too!!
Sorry for the mistakes in writing the above, I am on my phone!
I think Charles makes a valid argument. We all know what a Refuge Officer is and we all know that we carry a gun for a reason, but does the public? Rebecca I have also been accosted for carrying a gun. One lady told me she would be better off staying at home when she couldn’t even go to the park without seeing someone carrying a gun. No amount of education on our part would convince everyone what we do. Multiple states are changing their game warden’s titles over to Conservation Police or something with Police in the title, for safety concerns. There are people out there that don’t know what a game warden is any more than a Refuge Officer. I work a lot of MBTA enforcement off refuge and most of the guys I check know me as the Federal Game Warden, most of them never heard of a refuge. I don’t think the title Refuge Officer identifies us a legitimate law enforcement officers. When David Grove’s killer was asked why he killed a police officer his response was I didn’t kill a police officer I just killed a game warden. Police vs. Game Warden, I don’t have the answer but we should definitely look at our state counter parts and give this some attention.
I agree with Dustin and Charles. “Refuge Officer” is a monaker that does not give our Officers the respect that they deserve because it is not universally recognized. I get asked what it means each time I fly armed and show my badge to TSA. I cannot remember ever using it in the field. I either announce myself as “Police Officer” or “Game Warden”, depending on what kind of contact I am making.
Last year at In-Service, I heard an Officer enter a NLTA scenario and announce himself as a “Refuge Officer”. Really? Did that make everyone freeze? Maybe for a moment because they were confused, but when you’re in the field by yourself, you’d better establish that you are in a position of authority and have a command presence right away. Proclaiming “Refuge Officer” just does not cut it. I hope this changes with the 1801s.
This is an interesting discussion and one I admit I’ve never thought about but it does make one wonder about the validity of “Refuge Officer” when it comes to making someone immediately understand who and what you’re doing. My 7 year old son is a fan of shows like Wild Justice and Operation Wild and was quite fascinated by a recent story in the Washington Post about undercover FWS agent, Ken McCloud. And if it takes shows like this to educate folks about what FWS and NWRS law enforcement officers do every day then it’s a great thing. Perhaps we should take a cue from the marketers of these popular shows (who likely have done a lot of polling to know what resonates with people) and start calling Refuge Officers what they call wildlife cops as well.
I like the tradition of “Refuge Officers” but we need a title that is relevant in today’s society.
Back in time, we called them Refuge Rangers….
As the Honor Guard celebrates its first year of Service, I invite you to watch a short 15 minute video highlighting the deployments and training of the SHG in “Year One” – including at the Vision Conference. Thank you all for your support of the Honor Guard.
Officer Rebecca Merritt
http://www.nwroa.org/newsletter.html
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