All Crime, All The Time – News and Commentary on the Criminal Class
To support ASMFC’s conservation efforts, NRP officers continued stepped up enforcement in January even though the number of fish and temperatures plummeted. During the first three weeks, officers checked more than 56 recreational anglers (vs. 34 in all of January 2014), 16 watermen (vs. 25) and 59 charter fishermen (vs. 0). They also conducted inspections of eight seafood markets and distributors. Officers logged more than 70 vessel and 100 dockside foot patrol hours.
The Maryland Natural Resources Police mourned the passing last Wednesday of K-9 Blu, assigned to Western Maryland in 2007. The black Labrador retriever was 10 years, three months old and was suffering from lymphoma.
“Blu and his handler, Officer Curt Dieterle, were the epitome of what it takes to be a successful K-9 team,” said Sgt. Lisa Nyland, the unit leader. “They were motivated, competent, professional and accessible to not only NRP but to other agencies and the public as well. Blu’s passing leaves a huge void in our K-9 unit that will be very hard to fill.”
Barrel-chested with a friendly smile that delighted children, Blu was trained for three missions ─ track, search for an item, such as a gun, and detect wildlife ─ tasks the dog performed with gusto.
An investigation by the Maryland Natural Resources Police and allied State and local agencies resulted in the charging of five anglers in Charles County last Friday for illegally fishing for Striped Bass in a spawning area and catching other protected fish.
Acting on information gathered during surveillance, NRP officers and members of the Southern Maryland Information Center watched as a group of people caught and kept Striped Bass from an area of the Potomac River that is closed to allow spawning. As the anglers left at 1:50 a.m., NRP officers and units from the Charles County Sheriff’s Office stopped them.