Arizona Game and Fish Law Enforcement Officers recently completed a required cross training under the tutelage of the Arizona U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Special Agents in Flagstaff and were commissioned with certain U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service law enforcement authority. In kind, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Special Agents assigned in Arizona will have reciprocal authority and receive similar training conducted by their state counterparts.
2This historic action came about through an Inter-Governmental Cooperative Agreement between the two agencies that will mutually benefit law enforcement officers of both agencies and the wildlife resources they are charged with protecting throughout Arizona.
"This is a double barreled tool box that more effectively protects the resources of the State of Arizona," said USFWS Southwest Region Special Agent-in-Charge Richard McDonald. For example, Arizona Game and Fish Wardens will now have the authority to seize evidence and make an arrest on Federal wildlife violations. Federal cases will ultimately be turned over to the USFWS. In kind, federal agents can now act under Arizona state law. For example, someone caught taking a deer in a closed season or poaching can be cited, apprehended and the deer taken by federal agents and the case then turned over to the State for prosecution.
Working together and sharing all that expertise will make for a powerful law enforcement team," said McDonald. Our state partnerships are an invaluable tool in our enforcement efforts and coordination within the State of Arizona has never been better.?
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 Fish and Wildlife Management offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
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For more information about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Visit our home page at http://www.fws.gov
