Looking For a Retired Wildlife Trooper!

[Michael Strahan]

Hi folks,

If you've been on this site long, you know that this forum "Ask and Alaska Wildlife Trooper" came to us at the request of the Alaska State Troopers. They thought a venue for Q&A would serve the public well. We agreed, as long as they would agree to staff it with someone who could speak on behalf of the Troopers. So we created a user account that several active wildlife Troopers had access to. But they went on to other assignments, and this forum has languished in the backwater for some time.

A related issue is that some members thought the Troopers would be able to address questions related to interpretations of the law. When they discovered that the Troopers are here to enforce the law, and interpretation is left to the courts, interest flagged.

More recently we began to look for ways to lean down our forum offerings in order to improve the user experience. This forum is one we are looking at cutting, unless there is still enough interest to keep it. Here are some questions for you, and I would appreciate your vote on keeping it or scrapping it.

What if we changed the purpose of it a bit, and had a retired Wildlife Trooper field the questions? He would not be bound by the same constraints he would if he still worked for the Department, he could post anonymously, and it would be understood that his posts would reflect actual field situations and potential Trooper responses. The posts would not have any legal use in court, but they could help people avoid entanglements with the Troopers to a degree. I'll post a poll to get your perspective, and feel free to comment on this, pro or con. Not interested in a lot of commentary, or how you feel about the Wildlife Troopers one way or another, just whether or not the idea still has merit.

On a related note, I would be interested in recruiting a retired Wildlife Trooper who would monitor this forum and answer member's questions. If that's you, please drop me a private message. I can set up a "Retired Trooper" username for you, to protect your identity, if you prefer.

Thanks, everyone!

-Mike

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[Daveinthebush]

There are many questions concerning regulations. The questions usually end up in fishing, hunting and other sub-forums. Just like we have posts that do not pertain to anything "Alaska" showing up from time-to-time. If people put their questions in the Ask the Trooper, it might help.

 

[Festus500]

i have only recently joined here, but have experience with other sites in other states [Pensacola Fishing Forum and Woods and Waters] along with several AK social media forums like the “surf fishing group” “40 mile caribou” on FB.

My observation is a large percentage of people ask questions where answer is VERY easily found by just reading the regulations.

So on one hand I would vote no because we should not be a crutch and send those people to read the regulations.

Then on the other hand there are questions the troopers don’t agree with. For example the regulations say a person must be 1/4 mile from a dwelling to legally shoot at water fowl. However what if that property owner has a garden and small shed 1/8 mile away? In this case troopers were called but were unwilling to do anything because the law is ambiguous. In the end we found a different solution to deter the duck hunters but that was only luck.

Here is another. A kid who is 14 or younger must wear a PFD while in a boat. However what if it is anchored in the river? What if the boat has a closed cabin? What if the kid gets out of anchored boat and is in chest deep fast moving water?

 

[iofthetaiga]

Here is another. A kid who is 14 or younger must wear a PFD while in a boat. However what if it is anchored in the river? What if the boat has a closed cabin? What if the kid gets out of anchored boat and is in chest deep fast moving water?

This thread is 3 years old, the OP is deceased and the site has a new owner, so I doubt the question is still at hand.

But as you said, it's not difficult to read the regulations. In Alaska, a child aged 12 or younger (less than 13 years old) must wear a PFD at all times while in an open boat. If the kid is below deck or inside an enclosed cabin no PFD is required to be worn. Doesn't matter if the boat is underway, anchored, drifting, nor whether in a pond, lake, ocean or river. Doesn't matter how deep the water, nor how fast it is or isn't moving...and if the kid gets out of the boat, the kid is no longer in the boat, thus the regulation is no longer applicable.

Hopefully that helps.